Happy Confident Me Anxiety & Fears Toolkit

“My little one is only 7, and I honestly can’t believe he’s getting this already. He loves hearing what the kids in the videos say about their feelings — especially the older ones. He actually said, ‘Oh Mummy, I think and feel like that!’ He’s so young, but really starting to understand how he feels.”

“Understanding the problem is only half the battle. The good news is that we can help our children manage anxiety, not by removing all fear, but by teaching them how to navigate it with confidence.”

“You are loveable as you are, regardless of the feelings that you feel and it's safe to feel these feelings”

“Anxiety is a signal that we need to do something. It's not something we need to avoid or run away from. It's something that needs our attention to work through and move past.”

“For every individual, anxiety shows up differently. It can come out as masking behaviours, such as people pleasing, perfectionism and being the 'good' child.”

“Anxiety leaves us feeling quite out of control; Whether your child is neurodivergent or not, anything you can help make more certain for them is going to really help them have a sense of control.”

“We often unconsciously deny or dismiss our child's feelings, as if we were putting putting a sticky plaster over their emotions. When a child is anxious or worried, it absolutely does not work to tell them they're worrying about nothing.”

“Try and externalise it; rather than 'Why do you have that thought?' try 'That really sounds like a big anxious thought and those are really hard”

“Perfectionism is bred when a child believes their self-worth hangs on the success of their performance and that alone. True self-esteem is built when a child believes their worth is nothing to do with with that exam mark, whether they scored the winning goal, or whether they got 10/10.”