Anxiety. Anger. Preteens. Teens.

Have you found your pre-teen or teen with heightened anxiety lately? Angry for no reason? Here are some recommendations you can try as a parent at home:

Recommendations:

• Spend 1 hour a week alone with you and no other kids

• Validating- it’s ok to be angry, sad, depressed- it’s how you take care of yourself and how it reflects on others is where responsibility comes in

• Allow them to cry and hold them for however long without any talking if need be in a safe space

Tools

Keeping feelings safe:

• create a box (something that closes) so they can keep their feelings safe that later they can share with you, mentor or therapist in a private safe space that has to be kept between that person and him unless he agrees to sharing - like a box journal but no writing is necessary- can be just words or drawings or can be words and fold them up and keep inside

Ways to get out frustration:

• save newspaper and keep in a box that only they can use when they’re angry so that they can have a space to just rip it up and get the frustration out

• give art supplies to help control moods - pencil, marker, colored pencil

• give art supplies to help release frustration - paints, model magic or clay

• play a sport/have a hobby - one they can always access

• Punching pillows in a safe space

Way to help relax:

• 15 min a day of coloring in the adult coloring books

• Listening to non-verbal music