How Group Therapy and Mindfulness can help with Child Anxiety
Kairos Wellness Collective now runs three robust groups for anxiety targeting middle school, high school, and college-aged young people. Unfortunately, even though many children freely share symptoms of anxiety with each other, others feel deep shame that their “fears” will be minimized or mocked by others.
Many children with anxiety-related disorders, such as Generalized Anxiety, OCD, or specific phobias, may have limitations that aren’t considered age-appropriate by their peers.
For example, a 12-year-old with anxiety might not be able to go upstairs without a family member, or a teenager might still be comforting themselves during stress by sucking their thumb. A college student with anxiety might feel deeply uncomfortable with his friends’ drinking and start avoiding all social events.
Young people of all ages at our center still find themselves having attacks of anger that most closely resemble tantrums and have their origin in a highly-stressed nervous system.
When we bring groups of such young people together and teach them mindfulness skills, we are also providing a safe, supportive environment to share these challenges. It can feel very alienating to children to not be able to participate in the same activities as their peers due to the constraints of anxiety. For some, meditation skills feel completely unattainable.
Creating a group environment for breathing, yoga, and mindfulness activities makes them achievable, normalized, and within reach for almost all kids.
Kids feed off each other's energy and respond positively to youth leaders in the groups (who are usually a few years older). Youth leaders share their own struggles with anxiety and frustration, and contribute to the sense of universality that is key to healing.
Groups help children build a sense of agency with their own anxiety.
If your child might be a good fit for group therapy, an affordable alternative to individual therapy, please contact Kairos Wellness Collective today.
