Freeing Children from Negative Thinking

Dr. Tamar Chansky is Director of the Children's Center for OCD and Anxiety in suburban Philadelphia and the creator of worrywisekids.org, an educational website for parents and professionals.. Specializing in the unique needs of children and families tackling the challenges of debilitating anxiety, she is the author of Freeing Your Child from Anxiety, Freeing Your Child from Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. Her latest book, Freeing Your Child from Negative Thinking will be released in September 2008.

Why doesn’t reassurance, pleading and tough love not work for anxious kids? Why do anxious children avoid certain situations? Parents start by reassuring, but may end up frustrated and lose their patience when their children's fears may make no sense to them. In this session we will look at how parents can be effective in mobilizing their children by helping them first challenge their own thinking, and then finding creative ways of breaking down challenges into small steps. Scenarios for home and school will be discussed.