When Calming Strategies Make Anxiety Worse

Parent supporting anxious child during emotional regulation moment

Most adults have good intentions when a child is distressed. We soothe.Often, we reassure children that everything is okay.Many adults offer coping strategies immediately.Most of us try to calm the situation as quickly as possible. And sometimes, that is exactly what the nervous system needs. But sometimes, those same interventions unintentionally strengthen the very anxiety […]