The good news is that child anxiety treatment can reduce symptoms and help kids get back to activities they love and do well at. It takes time for treatment to work, and some kids experience relapses. But if you know what to look for and how to help your child when they do have anxiety flare-ups, your family can get through them together.
The most effective way to treat anxiety in children is with cognitive behavioral therapy, or CBT. This helps children learn coping skills that can help them calm their body reactions, think differently, and face fears and challenges in smaller steps. It can be done with a therapist individually or in a group therapy with other kids who have anxiety. CBT can be used by itself or with anti-anxiety medication, which is often a short-term treatment option when paired with CBT.
Many health professionals have different approaches to treating childhood anxiety, and they may focus on different aspects of the disorder depending on their training and expertise. For example, some therapists are experts in family systems therapy, which looks at how relationships and communication impact mental health. Others focus on teaching mindfulness, a technique that can help kids to observe and accept their anxious thoughts and feelings rather than reacting to them.
It’s also important for parents to understand that the goal isn’t to eliminate anxiety, but to teach kids how to manage it. Many kids who have anxiety avoid situations that trigger it, but this can actually make their anxiety worse over time. For example, if a child is scared to go to school and their parents take them out of there to protect them, they can start to believe that being scared is dangerous. This can cause a cycle where kids become more and more afraid to go into uncomfortable situations, which makes them more and more anxious.
The best way to help your child when they are feeling anxious is to talk to them and listen to them. It can be hard for kids to articulate how they feel, and they will have different indicators of anxiety at different ages. For younger children, it might be helpful to speak to your GP or a family therapist, while older kids can often get support through local youth counselling services (called specialist CYPMHS) or via NHS Youth Access.