This is part 3 of our series for mental health awareness month on how to encourage emotional wellness in our children and ourselves, and today we are covering a topic that we’ve needed to talk about on the show for a long time: how to parent children who have anxiety.
I feel like Lisa Sabey did a fabulous job in our episode a few weeks ago giving us some real-life scenarios of how to react in the moment when our child is extremely fearful (listen to it here), and in today’s episode, we are hear from Audra Elkington, a mom in the trenches of raising two kids who have diagnosed anxiety disorders and some pro-active things she does to shore up her kids and herself and make daily life more manageable.
I am so grateful that she is on the podcast today sharing her story, and I know so many of you will resonate with her experience.
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–Audra Elkington’s 3 Takeaways for parenting children with anxiety disorders-
- Write it out. When you are supporting a child who has anxiety, it is important to chronicle the small wins so you can see that even though progress is not linear, it is happening!
- Use their interests and talents to help them succeed and give them an outlet. Audra Elkington believes that as hard as it is to let go of expectations and dreams you might have had for your child, it is important to lean into their unique passions and support them in those.
- Get physical. Help your child tune in to all five senses and get grounded when they are starting to escalate.
>>>Will you try any of these tips from Audra Elkington? What would you add to her takeaways? Tell us in the comments below!
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–Sponsors-
BetterHelp
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-Get in touch with Audra Elkington!-
- Instagram: @audraelkington
- Website: A Worldwide Sisterhood
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-Links Mentioned in Today’s Show-
-Related Episodes you might be interested in if you like this episode from Audra Elkington-
181: HOW TO ENCOURAGE EMOTIONAL WELLNESS IN KIDS // LISA SABEY
120: HOW TO TEACH CHILDREN TO EAT // HOLLY YOUNG
141: RAISING CHILDREN WITH CHRONIC CONDITIONS // ANDELIN PRICE
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-Additional Resources from 3 in 30 Podcast-
- Order your copy of the Flecks of Gold Journal, a three-year journal to help you gather the golden moments within your motherhood!
- Join our community of heart-fueled mothers on Instagram!
- For a monthly recap of ALL of the takeaways from the month, sign up here.
