Anxiety in Kids isn't Always Unhealthy

Did you know that anxiety isn’t always bad?

Of course, it can be a problem: When it interferes with our life in a big way, when we get stuck with anxious feelings without being able to move through them, and when the anxiety response occurs without reason.

But experiencing anxiety can make a lot of sense, as well. It can even be healthy.

In this short video, I talk about the difference between anxiety as a pathology and anxiety as a healthy response to a situation that’s anxiety-producing. I share strategies to help kids, teens, and parents exercise self-compassion, and how we can look at this current moment with fresh eyes.

We can look at our anxiety and WHY it’s happening, rather than automatically pathologizing it; we can understand the mechanism behind anxiety, so we can work with it and help ourselves avoid getting stuck as things become safer again. Anxiety, like all feelings, is a part of the full range of emotions, and it’s appropriate to feel anxiety when there are threats or dangers present.