Anxiety in children is much more common than many people realize – 

 children will experience clinical-level anxiety. However, there are specific techniques and methods that can help children deal with their anxiety in healthy and beneficial ways. It is essential for parents – as well as teachers and caregivers – to be prepared with these tools in order to best help their children manage anxiety. 

By keeping these six tips in mind, you can give your child the tools necessary to not only deal with their anxiety, but to overcome it.

Don't Avoid Things Just Because They Make a Child Anxious

When a child is triggered by something and experiences an anxiety attack from being around it, removing the trigger may seem like an easy solution to combat the child's negative feelings. However, this isn't always the best idea. 

By avoiding triggers, they never learn how to cope with their anxiety. Avoiding things that make the child uncomfortable can actually feed their anxiety in the long run. It is more beneficial to help children learn how to deal with these triggers, rather than avoid them.

Express Positive But Realistic Expectations

Sometimes, a child's anxiety is caused by an event that could likely occur in the future, such as losing a soccer game. Rather than telling the child that they are destined to win it, which may not occur, it's best to assure them that regardless of whether they win or lose, they will be okay. Providing realistic expectations lets them know that no matter what they face, they can manage it, and you'll be there to support them.

Respect Their Feelings, But Don't Empower Them

Letting a child know that you hear their fears about something shows compassion and understanding, but does not mean you are encouraging or empowering the fears.

When a child expresses fear of going to the dentist, for example, be sure to let them know that you understand where they're coming from, but don't feed into their anxious thoughts. Instead, reinforce that they will be fine and that you are there to help them in any way you can.

Children can pick up on the slightest changes in tone of voice and body language, which can play into their anxiety. With this in mind, it is important to be mindful of what you say and do that could inadvertently reinforce their fears. 

Even if you are worried for them, try to speak and behave confidently, so they remain confident themselves. 

Encourage the Child to Work with their Anxiety

The unfortunate thing about anxiety is that it might never go away completely. This constant can make dealing with it regularly tiring, especially for a child. 

Let your child know how much you admire them for tirelessly working to overcome it, which will encourage them to keep up the good work.

Try to Keep the Anticipatory Period Short

Sometimes, expecting an anxiety attack is worse than the attack itself. If you know your child will be exposed to something that makes them uncomfortable, such as going to the doctor, don't feed into their fears by bringing up the appointment well in advance. 

Working to shorten the anticipatory period as much as possible can help mitigate their negative thoughts and feelings.

Help Your Child Build Confidence with Assistance from Marshall Pediatric Therapy 

If managing your child's anxiety has you feeling overwhelmed, the experienced team at Marshall Pediatric Therapy is here to help. We're proud to provide families, teachers, and caregivers with the tools they need to combat childhood mental health concerns, including anxiety. 

 today to learn more about how you can assist your child in overcoming their fears, boosting their confidence, and overcoming their anxiety.

How to Help Kids With Anxiety

Whether you are just hearing the words of your child’s diagnosis, or you’ve been traveling on a special needs journey for many years, it’s always nice to know there are people with you. There will be footprints left behind by those who have traveled the path before you, and others that will follow your footprints as they navigate the unknown. Every person on this path, each step that is taken, and each individual footprint is important. Why? Because this path isn’t a straight and easy one. You’ll doubt yourself, and you’ll doubt others.

 It will be just plain hard...but it’s worth it.

While your friends register their child for basketball camp, you will prepare for your child’s IEP meeting at school.

You will lose sleep worrying if your child is being bullied at school.

Your family may not understand why your child doesn’t like large birthday parties.

Your child’s peers may be preparing for college, while you are preparing for 24/7 caregiving. Your spouse may feel like a stranger passing in the night at times.

You may not recognize the person staring back at you in the mirror.

I get it. It will be so hard, but so worth it.

You will find your tribe, and build your child’s army. These are the people that will knock down walls with you, pull you from the darkness and show you the light, celebrate with you, rally with you, and you will cling to one another. Maybe it’s because they have traveled that path before and know the journey well. Maybe it’s because they have devoted their lives to helping better others’ lives.

Our journeys may be different, but our reason is the same.

The love for our children is unlike any other love we will ever have.

It’s a love that fights to move mountains, and it’s a love that is always worth it.

A Journey with Autism. IT'S WORTH IT. 

Parents, below are 4 tips and tricks to encourage early communication with your kiddo. As a Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP) that has a passion for early language, I use all of these during my therapy sessions.

You can do this by announcing and talking through both your and your child’s routines, even if

you are not directly talking to your child. Try announcing the steps of brushing your teeth or

making a meal. During play, try narrating the actions of characters, putting noises to toys, and

labeling objects, colors, and animals while reading a book. Books with repeated words, different

textures and hidden doors provide lots of opportunities for early language development!

Playing at eye level and using fun language may encourage your child to explore language.

Bringing toys to your mouth will allow them to see how you move our lips, teeth, and tongue to

create words and communicate our thoughts. Build in opportunities to provide choices and allow

for increased time for your child to respond!

Examples of fun language: are “Ready, set, go”, “beep, beep”, and animal noises.

Parents often know what their child wants or needs even if the child is not producing any words.

Build on this by providing the want and modeling it back to them. Do this during play by

reinforcing their language and building on what they already know. If your child isn’t verbal,

continue to provide language input by modeling speech during play.

“Oh, drink! You want a drink of milk.”

Does your child try to put noises to cars or animals?

Try: “Yes! Car goes vroom!” or, “Cow says mooo!”

Pairing verbal language with sign language can spark your child’s interest and decrease their

frustrations with communication. Once they realize their words and actions serve a purpose (to

get those babies what they want) then they are more eager to explore and communicate. As a

speech therapist, some of my favorite beginning signs are “more”, “all done”, “open”, “eat”, and

Remember to be gentle with yourself. Developing language is an incredible and complex skill.

You don’t need to spend a lot of money on expensive toys to practice these strategies at home.

Sit outside and talk about what you see, participate in pretend play, or use common home

objects as toys. Providing increased input, letting your child lead, and expanding on their

sounds/words will provide lots of opportunities for growth! 

to ask your SLP for some suggestions and demonstrations at your next appointment!

To inquire about booking your child's initial Speech-Language Therapy evaluation or next appointment with one of Marshall's expert clinicians, please utilize the form 

To learn even more about Speech-Language Disorders, statistics, and FAQs, you can visit the 

Four Tips & Tricks to Encourage Early Communication

How to use items you already have at home for your child’s sensory diet

One of our very favorite ways of addressing hot clinical topics is through a Q&A format. Learn from Occupational Therapist, Ellen Snyder, as she uncovers some of the most commonly asked questions from our parents and caregivers when it comes to establishing a sensory diet. Most, if not all of these items, can be found already laying around your house or can be purchased locally. You may also decide to conveniently take items on the go!

A: A sensory diet is a set or sequence of activities that engage multiple sensory systems. This can calm the child and help focus attention. 

Q: What sensory systems do sensory diets target?

A: The focus of the sensory diet will depend on your child's momentary needs. We have seven sensory systems (I know school only teaches us we have five, but there are two very important invisible ones). 

A: Everyone has a sensory system and can benefit from specific sensory input, however certain children may need a little extra support to get their sensory needs met. One way to think about this is with a cup analogy. If you think of each system as having an individual cup, the cup needs to be filled to meet his/her sensory needs. Until these sensory needs are met, it can be difficult for your child to attend to activities, listen to and follow directions, and keep his/her body safe. As each child and his/her sensory system is unique, the “size of the cup” will vary.  For example, a child sensitive to sound has a “small auditory system cup” and it doesn’t take much sound to fill his cup. Another child might have a “large tactile system cup” and needs a lot of tactile play to fill his cup before his sensory system is satisfied.  A few of the diagnoses that benefit from a sensory diet include:

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

Q: Can I give too much sensory input to my child?

A: The only system that doesn’t become over-sensitive is the Proprioceptive system (deep pressure). All other systems can become overwhelmed and lead to increased dysfunction. Think, of becoming dizzy after spinning, or over-sensitive to loud sounds or bright lights when in a busy place. 

Q: What can I do to help regulate my child after too much sensory stimulation?

A: Input to the proprioceptive system can help the nervous system become regulated after too much of another type of sensory input. Deep squeezes on arms, hands, legs, feet, and gentle deep pressure on the head, pushing, pulling, or lifting an item with weight or resistance. 

Decreasing as much other sensory stimulation as possible, such as moving to a quiet room or smaller space, dimming lights, and reducing sound can help your child become calmer and allow his/her nervous system to not have to work as hard to filter out the external sensory stimulation. 

Q: What is a time-effective way to provide the sensory stimulation my child needs during the day? 

A: The best way to help your child get the sensory stimulation his/her body and nervous system need is to work it into their daily routine. When a child wakes up, provide deep squeezes to the head, arms, trunk, and legs

 Moving to different areas in the house, encourage your child to move like an animal 

(vestibular, proprioceptive, tactile, visual systems)

. Use of visual picture schedules for daily routine 

. Depending on your child’s needs allow for quiet or preferred music during breakfast 

. Carrying a backpack to the car and riding with it on their lap 

work with your child’s therapist to help solve how to integrate these activities into daily life. 

Q: Why does my child not become calm after 10 minutes of jumping on the trampoline? 

A: For some children, although they appear to crave constant movement, such as jumping, swinging, being upside down, and running around, their nervous system has a hard time knowing what to do with certain types of sensory stimulation. Think of a filing cabinet with no organizational system (their brain/nervous system) and the file (sensory input) doesn’t have a clear place to be filed. 

Structured sensory-based activities will be the most effective and help organize your child’s nervous system.

 Movement with a purpose or a goal will help your child from becoming dysregulated from the type of input he/she is wanting. Some examples are jumping to a song and doing a freeze dance, running to gather specific items and bringing them to a specific location, swinging and giving high fives or reaching for a puzzle piece, crawling over pillows with a straw to blow a pom-pom on the floor, or locating hidden objects in a bean bin. 

however as we exist in the world we are constantly experiencing sensory input

 from the clothes on our body, to the smells and sights, and sounds we experience. Because of this fact, it is so important to encourage our kids to play using many different sensory systems. This will naturally help them integrate their sensory systems and get the input they need. 

Q: What are some typical household items to use for a sensory diet?

Learn more about Occupational Therapy services at Marshall Pediatric Therapy and how your family can benefit, 

Creating a Sensory Diet at Home 

Young children learn about the world around them using their entire bodies. Using multiple senses to experience something new or participate in an activity isn't only educational for toddlers but can also be a form of relaxation or entertainment. Because of this, the more opportunities toddlers have to learn, play, and grow through sensory activities, the better. 

Here is what you should know about incorporating more sensory activities into your toddler's routine. 

A sensory activity, or sensory play, is any type of activity that involves one's senses. This could encompass any activity that encourages them to move their bodies, listen carefully to the noises around them, or pay attention to how an object feels, smells, looks, or tastes. This hands-on learning approach is a fun way to pass the time. It can also play a critical role in helping your child's brain develop.

The Benefits of Sensory Activities for Toddlers

While sensory play can be an effective way for children of all ages to learn, it's especially beneficial for toddlers. Along with teaching them to engage with their surroundings, participating in sensory activities can help children as young as one improve their fine motor skills, verbal communication, and ability to focus. This can pave the way for them to be better students, using investigative, creative, and critical thinking skills.

Sensory Play That Two-Year-Olds Need to Experience

If the idea of coming up with activities that will stimulate your toddler's senses while engaging their senses sounds like a daunting task, don't worry. Creating simple yet effective sensory activities are more accessible than you might think. 

Here are some ideas to keep in mind when facilitating sensory play for your two-year-old:

-Fill a bin with an assortment of colorful pieces, such as buttons, pipe cleaners, and plastic eggs. This will capture their attention visually and allow them to practice using their fine motor skills as they pick up pieces of different sizes, shapes, and textures.

-Create a sensory bag using a plastic bag, hair gel, and small items, such as toys, balls, sequins, and coins. Duct tape it shut after sealing it, and encourage your child to look for hidden pieces. 

Never Force Sensory Activities on Toddlers

In most cases, your toddlers are excited to participate in any activity that allows them to use their bodies, make a mess, or have fun in a surprising way. While this is true, it's essential to keep in mind that every person experiences sensations differently. If your child is hesitant to engage in a specific form of sensory play, it's best not to make them. Doing so can harm their sensory systems rather than benefit them.

Can Your Toddler Benefit From Sensory Play and Other Therapies? Contact Marshall Pediatric Therapy

Engaging your child's senses through play is a great way to help them learn, keep them entertained, and create new memories. For some toddlers, using certain senses is easier said than done, even when the activity is meant to be fun. If your child could use extra help in engaging their senses or could benefit from other therapies, the trusted team at Marshall Pediatric Therapy is here to help. 

We are proud to assist children of all ages to learn, grow, and thrive through therapeutic and evidence-based practices, including sensory play. 

 today to learn more about how sensory activities could benefit your toddler, contact us today. We look forward to helping your child live their healthiest, happiest life!

From Our Experts