This blog was originally written while the world was amid the pandemic. For several years, the one thing that stood out was the undeniable losses people were experiencing. 

Many people are still trying to recover from those years. You may be one of them. You’re not alone.

Anxiety is one of the main issues that people come to therapy to deal with.

Maybe you have never gone to therapy and the thought of talking about anxiety feels hard. Perhaps you have tried to “talk” to a therapist before about your anxiety. And it didn’t go as you hoped.

Some therapies rely much less on talking, Art Therapy is one of them.

My list below includes 7 things to remember, contained in the acronym, “RESPOND”. How you purposely choose to respond to your children amid grief, loss, and other stressful events is incredibly important.

In my journey, when I was a younger mom, I experienced health issues. At the time, nothing seemed to help. Then I began working with a nutritionist in Encinitas and it changed so many things.

Adults who come to therapy, often have developed unhelpful ways of coping with their anxiety. Parents who reach out to me about child therapy want their children to learn better ways to cope with anxiety.

Stress can come from external events, illnesses, injuries, and even from past experiences. How much stress can one body take? Everyone is different. Some people are more resilient in the face of certain stressors.

So how do you know if you’ve reached your limit and now may be dealing with underlying anxiety?

The most natural thing when a child is in distress is to help them, to assist them in some way. That help often comes in the form of information, advice, and solutions.  While children may need your information, they first need to feel connected to you.  I don’t know the origin of the idea, but these words have always stuck with me, “Connect before your correct”.  However, it seems for many parents and other adults it’s easier to correct or try to “fix” a child, and then try to connect with them. 

You can’t even put the past two years into words. You made it through the holidays. The disappointments, the stress, the grief. While you may or may not be looking forward to the New Year, you may be wondering if it’s time to address your anxiety. Perhaps you’ve been riding the waves up and down for a while.

As a therapist in San Marcos, CA, I know that the holidays may feel overwhelming. You’re searching for ways to feel calmer during this season in the midst of all that is going on in your life and the life of those around you.

Anxiety is a normal human experience. Perhaps that is why many people search daily for effective ways to cope with anxiety for themselves and their children.

Perhaps, you have been searching for ways to cope with your anxiety for years.