Freeing Your Child From Anxiety by Tamar E Chansky

Another book on anxiety in children. This one is a little more structured. It goes through what is fear and what is anxiety, when help is needed and strategies to help your child. The approach recommended is basically to teach your child that they don’t have to listen to that “worry voice” in their heads. The book deals with more severe anxiety – phobias, OCD, panic, tourette’s etc as well as the more common forms and discusses some of the common fears children have and situations where anxiety is likely to arise. While I know that the strategies in the book will probably work, it goes against my insticts to not acknowledge some of my child’s fears and anxiety and to tell him not to listen to that “woery voice”. I know that strategy may be useful, and it might be something I try at some point but its a little too pragmatic for my liking right now. There is also a recommended process of dealing with a specific anxiety by pushing your child step by step to do a little more and a little more until they are able to conquer their fear (this is like the “hold this spider” approach for aracnaphobics). Again, it might be useful but the book just didn’t seize me with that “yes, this is right” feeling. I think the thing with parenting / advice books is that you basically read them until you find one that appeals to you. So, while the advice in the others are valid, really you are looking for a book that confirms what you already think, and tells you how to take it to the next step. It has to be a pretty convincing book otherwise.