Anxiety and Mental Health
What is anxiety?
Anxiety is a normal emotion that helps keep us safe and motivates us to get things done. However, sometimes anxiety can get “stuck” and impact a child’s ability to complete normal everyday tasks. As many as 1 in 5 children and youth in Ontario experience a mental health problem.
When does a child need mental health support?
A child would benefit from mental health support when their anxiety is consistently impacting their ability to participate in daily life. Anxiety may look like:
Difficulties separating from a caregiver at drop-offs or being alone in a part of the house
Fear of interacting socially with others or having a hard time speaking to new people (selective mutism)
Complaining of physical symptoms such as a stomachache or difficulties breathing
Asking the same worry questions over and over again
Getting stuck on a specific fear such as: the dark, thunderstorms or spiders
How does OT support mental health?
OT’s provide evidence-based counselling and psychotherapy treatment approaches customized to meet the child’s developmental age. For examples:
Formal lessons for teens or play-based activities for young children to teach cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) techniques
Using storybooks and workbooks to help teach complex psychotherapy strategies in more simple ways
Teaching child-friendly calming strategies such as mindfulness and breathing
Parenting coaching to help caregivers know how to support their child such as learning about attachment theory