Understanding Anxiety in our Children and AdolescentsUnderstanding Anxiety in our Children and Adolescents
Horizon Heart to Heart
Christina Pearl talks with child and adolescent counsellor Faith about how anxiety shows up in young people, from tummy aches to tantrums, and how playful counselling can help. The conversation offers reassurance and practical ideas for parents who may be worried about their child’s mental health.
16:03•6 Jan 2021
Spotting Anxiety in Kids: A Down-to-Earth Guide for Worried Parents
Episode Overview
- Anxiety in children can appear as physical complaints like headaches and stomach aches or as aggression, tantrums and anger.
- Typical developmental worries become a concern when they stop a child from managing everyday tasks like going to school or feeling safe in usual settings.
- Covid-related changes, including altered schooling, reduced social contact and mask wearing, have increased anxiety for many children and teens.
- Play-based counselling, including games, puppet shows and stories, helps children link body sensations to emotions and practise asking trusted adults for support.
- Parents are reminded that anxiety is common, they are the experts on their child, and they are allowed to ask questions and voice concerns throughout the counselling process.
“If it wasn't common, I wouldn't be able to tell you what it is.”
How do people find strength in their journey to sobriety when their kids are struggling with anxiety too? This conversation from Horizon Heart to Heart looks at that tough overlap between parenting, mental health, and everyday stress. Host Christina Pearl chats with Faith, an MSW counsellor who works mainly with children and adolescents, about how anxiety can show up long before adulthood.
Faith explains that kids don’t always say, “I feel anxious.” Instead, you might see “frequent stomach aches, headaches… more like physiological symptoms,” or, on the flip side, angry outbursts and tantrums. The chat breaks down what’s typical worry and what might be a red flag.
Faith notes that anxiety becomes more concerning when it “starts to interfere with their ability to do school or feel comfortable in certain settings.” School pressure, peer worries, separation anxiety and even wearing masks are all mentioned as common triggers, especially since Covid changed routines so dramatically. Parents anxious about counselling get a clear picture of what support can look like.
For children, Faith says, “children's main form of language is play,” so sessions might involve board games, puppet shows, scavenger hunts or stories, all built around helping kids recognise what anxiety feels like in their bodies and how to talk about it with a trusted adult.
Faith reassures hesitant parents that they’re far from alone: “If it wasn't common, I wouldn't be able to tell you what it is.” She also stresses that parents are the experts on their own children and are allowed to question anything that happens in therapy.
If you're juggling your own recovery, stress, or mental health while raising a worried child, this gentle, practical chat might be the nudge you need to start a conversation at home—what signs are you already seeing that might be worth talking about?
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