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All parents struggle with when to step in and help your child, versus just letting them figure it out on their own. But, with kids with anxiety, it can get a little trickier. In this episode, Nikki and Chad talk about when you should swoop in and help, when you push the child a little harder to tackle a task, and when your child’s behavior is anxiety or manipulation to get what they want. In this episode, you’ll hear two tools your child should have before you nudge them along so they tackle tough situations more successfully. You’ll also pick up some advice on how to handle your child’s actions when they push you too far.

Note: This episode includes a discussion of self harm and suicidal ideation, listener discretion advised.

Suicide and Crisis Hotline: 988 

In this episode, Nikki and Chad discuss the role that thinking plays in childhood mental illness. Nikki shares the thoughts, feelings, and behavior triangle and provides parents with a framework for better understanding their children’s emotions and behavior at different stages of development. Nikki also introduces the different types of thinking errors or thought distortions that all people commonly use, and describes how these can contribute to anxiety and other mental health symptoms. Here is an article that describes a variety of thoughts distortion. Ways to model positive thinking for our children are also discussed. Chad and Nikki talk briefly about how thoughts of self harm and suicide can develop and how to respond if your child discloses these kinds of thoughts to you. To close out the episode, a few more strategies for shifting negative thinking in children are shared, including this worry tree where children can symbolically hang their negative thoughts on the tree at night before bed or any time they need to clear their mind.

In this episode, Chad and Nikki are joined by Erin, the mother of a six year old with a newly diagnosed anxiety disorder. Erin shares her family’s journey into childhood mental health in a raw, emotional way in which many parents can relate. Erin’s story starts with her son getting kicked out of preschool, and she shares the steps she and her husband have taken since that devastating point in their lives. Discover how this family is navigating the winding, often frustrating road to find the right help for their son. If you’re to the point where you feel people have given up on your child, this episode will give you hope and options of what you can do. From one parent to another, you are not alone, and hearing this story will help you realize that.

Chad and Nikki are joined by the Bealor family for the first ever interview episode of Scrambled. Luke, Tara, Isaac, and Ian share their journal through childhood mental health with listeners discussing topics like how they knew when to ask for help, what it was like sharing their story with others, and what it’s like to experience and live with childhood anxiety. Isaac bravely talks about his experience because he wants others to know it’s okay to have anxiety and that help is available.

In their second bonus episode, Chad and Nikki discuss technologies that or may not help with anxiety and other mental health symptoms, including apps you can download, products you can purchase, and the recent increase in the availability of telehealth mental health services due to COVID. During the episode, Nikki mentions an article she wrote about how to handle screen time and electronic devices and children and Chad talked about the phone contract that he and his wife used when their son got his first cell phone. Both resources are available below.

Show Notes:

Check out this article Nikki wrote about kids and screen time.

Cell Phone Contract

Feel free to click the picture for a larger version and print for your family.

Story-Up Healium news story: 

• In 2019, Chad did a TV news story on using technology to help treat stress and anxiety. You can check it out here: https://khqa.com/news/local/tech-treatment
• In Bonus Episode 2, Chad mentioned the app ‘Healium,’ you can check it out here: https://www.tryhealium.com/

For episode 7, Chad and Nikki dissect panic attacks, breaking down what they are, what causes them, and what you can do if you, or a child in your care is having one. Nikki also explains how to prevent panic attacks altogether with everyday wellness practices.

Show Notes:

Check out this helpful article about panic attacks from a reliable source.

This blog post has great information about how to use yoga as a tool for self-calming.

This video is a show yoga sequence that can be used to manage and reduce anxiety:

It’s the first ever bonus episode for Scrambled! Nikki & Chad tackle how best to handle your child’s (or your) anxiety during the holidays. From handling difficult conversations at the dinner table to dealing with large crowds, to how best to handle grief this time of year.

In episode 6, Nikki and Chad talk about the different types of anxiety disorders that can be diagnosed in childhood, including Separation Anxiety Disorder, Social Phobia, Specific Phobia, Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Panic Disorder, and Selective Mutism. They talk about the difference between behavioral concerns, functional anxiety, and anxiety that meets the criteria for a diagnosis.

Show Notes

Data from CDC regarding Childhood Mental Health:
https://www.cdc.gov/childrensmentalhealth/data.html

Data from the American Depression and Anxiety Association about Mental Health:
https://adaa.org/understanding-anxiety/facts-statistics

Episode 5 – Anxiety 101 – Anxiety is very hard to spot in a child, but it’s not impossible. The reason it’s so hard to spot is because it’s a shapeshifter. It looks like it could be many other conditions, but as long as you, or someone in a child’s life listens to what the child is feeling, you can unmask anxiety, and begin to treat it. In Anxiety 101, Nikki and Chad share what to look for in spotting anxiety in children, what the next step is once you find it, and how to begin dealing with it, so debilitating anxiety doesn’t develop, and your child learns to live with it.