“Recognize the symptoms! Tummy aches, behavioral problems, headaches, tearfulness, and refusal to participate in normal activities can be signs of anxiety. Sometimes kids can’t verbalize “I feel anxious.” Instead, it can manifest as physical and behavioral symptoms”

“Be patient, understand that things that other children can handle your child may not. Accept that your child has anxiety. Your life with them will be different at times. Get them professional help. Encourage them to not give in to their fears but to find ways to handle them with tools available through professionals, books, and online. Always celebrate a victorious outing, emotional challenge.”

“Be there for lots of hugs, helping them feel safe, and when their ready talking about what might be helpful next time. Take a break for yourself. This is crucial. As parents, we are on the front lines and the stress is real. The heartaches are real. Even going for a ride in the car by yourself can help. Don’t judge yourself a failure because you can’t fix it. Draw near to God, read His word, cry out to him, let Him know how you feel, pray always, relax lean on Him. Reading books, online material, and videos about people dealing with anxiety can help a lot by showing you others feel the same things you do. Seek professional help for yourself. Care for your whole family and let them care for you, as you all might take a backseat often.”

Encourage the rest of the family to encourage the child or children with anxiety, learn about it, and participate in helping the family work together. Baby steps, baby steps, baby steps. Be ready to step in mentally and physically when the situations warrant it. For example, crowded Jamaican market with extremely eager shop owners crowding children, I had the become very assertive and protect children, 1 of which froze in place and was crying. This is an extreme example but “fixable.” Other anxiety-provoking situations are not so easy to “fix” or handle."