Creative Ways to Help Children Manage Anxiety

This book sets out therapeutic activities to help children aged 4-12 years and their families to better understand and manage anxiety. It explains how to work with anxious children, providing a framework for assessment and therapy that draws on CBT, ACT and narrative therapy approaches. Lots of practical tips for therapists are included and important developmental considerations are discussed, including adapting therapy for children with developmental difficulties, and working with families and schools.

Over 50 playful therapeutic activities are included, which have been developed through the authors' extensive work with children, giving children an arsenal of coping strategies. They focus on key areas such as understanding anxiety, managing anxious thoughts, and building resilience and use readily available, inexpensive materials and downloadable templates which are provided in the book. This is the perfect tool for therapists looking for playful and purposeful ways to work with children with anxiety.

“I invite you to enjoy this wonderful book that Doctors Zandt and Barrett have created for all of us grownup therapists who need a kickstart for our imagination. They have taken the complicated ideas that explain how anxiety works in the body and mind and created fun, memorable ways to explain and experience what happens when a child gets anxious and what to do once anxiety occurs.”

" This book provides an abundance of strategies embedded in clinical wisdom and practical application, underpinned by strong theoretical understanding. The authors jointly represent in this book, what is essential to good assessment and intervention with children i.e. an understanding of child development alongside a capacity to utilise creativity in clinical enquiry and in therapeutic intervention. This approach allows the child voice and perspective to be heard and in turn to be active and engaged in therapy at their own level. I would highly recommend this book to clinical child specialists, developmental psychologists and developing therapists". -- - Dr Celeste Merrigan Clinical Child Adolescent & Family Psychologist M,Psych. DPsych(MAPS,CCLIN)
-- from the Foreword, Karen Cassiday, President of the Anxiety and Depression Association of America
This easy to read and thorough book is a terrific resource, full of user-friendly ideas. It will provide a strong grounding for new therapists, while the therapeutic activities will appeal to even the most experienced of therapists. -- Jodie Wassner, Educational and Developmental Psychologist and Author of Mindtrain: A Treatment Manual for Psychologists Working with Anxious Children in the Spirit of Acceptance Commitment Therapy

Dr Fiona Zandt and Dr Suzanne Barrett are clinical psychologists who each have over 18 years experience working therapeutically with children and families in a broad range of settings. They founded Creative Child Therapy Workshops in 2014 , providing in person and online workshops for therapists. Fiona and Suzanne both have successful private practices in Melbourne, Australia, and provide clinical supervision. In addition, Fiona works with the Specialist Autism Team at the Royal Children's Hospital and as a guest lecturer.

This book sets out therapeutic activities to help children aged 4-12 years and their families to better understand and manage anxiety. It explains how to work with anxious children, providing a framework for assessment and therapy that draws on CBT, ACT and narrative therapy approaches. Lots of practical tips for therapists are included and important developmental considerations are discussed, including adapting therapy for children with developmental difficulties, and working with families and schools. Over 50 playful therapeutic activities are included, which have been developed through the authors extensive work with children, giving children an arsenal of coping strategies. They focus on key areas such as understanding anxiety, managing anxious thoughts, and building resilience and use readily available, inexpensive materials and downloadable templates which are provided in the book. This is the perfect tool for therapists looking for playful and purposeful ways to work with children with anxiety.

This item is eligible for free returns within 30 days of delivery. See our returns policy for further details.