OCD Archives - AT: Parenting Survival for All Ages

PSP 078: Children Hoarders: Signs of Hoarding and How to Help Hoarders

PSP 078: Children Hoarders: Signs of Hoarding and How to Help Hoarders

Do you have a “saver” at your house? A child who finds treasures on street corners and everywhere in between? It is normal for kids to love to collect things like rocks, leaves and small toys – but when does it cross the line? When are you dealing with children hoarders?

This week on the AT Parenting Survival Podcast we are dishing the dirt on how to tell the difference between developmentally appropriate behavior and hoarding behavior. I also talk about some concrete ways to help children hoarders not grow up to be an adult hoarder!

Ask the Child Therapist Kids Edition Episode 86: Helping a Child with Negative Self-Talk

Ask the Child Therapist Kids Edition Episode 86: Helping a Child with Negative Self-Talk

How often does your child partake in negative self-talk? How often do you hear things like:

I will never get that right!
I am so stupid.
You don’t love me.
I am so ugly.
I am such an idiot.
I always make you mad.
No one likes me.
I am so awkward.
I am so annoying.

Even if you aren’t hearing these thought out loud, many kids are constantly berating themselves silently.

PSP 077: An Interview with Kelly Anderson, The Director of Unstuck: an OCD Kids Movie

PSP 077: An Interview with Kelly Anderson, The Director of Unstuck: an OCD Kids Movie

All too often kids with OCD feel like they are crazy, weird and alone. This couldn’t be farther from the truth. In fact roughly 1 out of every 200 kids has Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Luckily there is a movement to help educate the world on what OCD is and how to effectively treat it. As part of this goal, Kelly Anderson and Chris Baier created the documentary Unstuck: an OCD Kids Movie.

Ask the Child Therapist Episode 85 Kids Edition: Germophobia – How to Help Kids Who are Afraid of Germs

Ask the Child Therapist Episode 85 Kids Edition: Germophobia – How to Help Kids Who are Afraid of Germs

Germophobia: How to Help Kids Who are Afraid of Germs There is an enemy lurking behind every doorknob, every toilet seat, every handshake and kiss. There is a deathly illness behind every shared sip and every shared bite. When kids are afraid of germs they live their lives like this. They live in terror that their next touch, taste or wipe will be their last. […]

PSP 076: Help Kids with Anxiety & OCD Using the CPS Model

PSP 076: Help Kids with Anxiety & OCD Using the CPS Model

Last week I had the pleasure of interviewing Dr. Ross Greene, the best-selling author of The Explosive Child. He is the originator of the Collaborative & Proactive Solutions (CPS) Model. We talked about how to help kids with anxiety and OCD using his approach.

Many people have asked me how his CPS model fits within the approaches of Exposure Response Prevention (ERP) and other strategies we often talk about on my site, in my podcast and on my youtube channel.

To help with this I have dedicated a podcast episode to exploring the use of CPS methods combined with strategies for helping kids with anxiety and OCD.

Ask the Child Therapist Episode 84 Kid Edition: When Anxiety Gives You the Feeling Like You have to Pee Right After You Pee

Ask the Child Therapist Episode 84 Kid Edition: When Anxiety Gives You the Feeling Like You have to Pee Right After You Pee

When Anxiety Gives You the Feeling Like You have to Pee Right After You Pee Anxiety can do lots of things to our children’s bodies. It can make their heart race. It can make their stomach hurt. But many people don’t realize that it can also create the feeling like you have to pee right after you pee! This can range from a slightly annoying […]

PSP 075: Interview with Dr. Ross Greene, Author of The Explosive Child and the Creator of the CPS Model

PSP 075: Interview with Dr. Ross Greene, Author of The Explosive Child and the Creator of the CPS Model

Do you ever wonder why your child keeps doing the same things no matter how much discipline you throw at him? Do you struggle with getting your partner to see that your child isn’t trying to be difficult? If these are some of your struggles you have to dive into Dr. Ross Greene’s work!

Helping Anxious Kids with Self-Regulation & Sensory Overload

Helping Anxious Kids with Self-Regulation & Sensory Overload

What do you get when 39 seasoned sensory and self-regulation educators, therapists and parents come together to offer their best products and resources?

A crazy deal! See for yourself – check it out here.

The much anticipated Sensory Super Bundle is available for only a few days! This year it is crazy! If you have a child with sensory or self-regulation issues this bundle is so worth it.

Ask the Child Therapist Episode 82 Kid Edition: How to Explain Sensory Processing to Kids

Ask the Child Therapist Episode 82 Kid Edition: How to Explain Sensory Processing to Kids

Does your child have sensory issues? Sensory issues are a common companion to anxiety and OCD. That can make an already difficult situation that much more difficult!

Often parents have a reactive approach to Sensory Processing Disorder. They put out fires as they come and often meltdowns are par for the course.

Many of us don’t think about equipping our kids with skills to handle their own sensory struggles.

Ask the Child Therapist Episode 81 Kids Edition: When Anxiety or OCD Makes You Afraid to Eat. Coping with ARFID

Ask the Child Therapist Episode 81 Kids Edition: When Anxiety or OCD Makes You Afraid to Eat. Coping with ARFID

Anxiety and OCD can make kids afraid to do many things. Afraid to sleep. Afraid of the dark. Afraid to make friends. But when anxiety or OCD makes you afraid to eat it can become a much more serious issue.

PSP 072: Helping Kids with Anxiety & OCD Survive the Summer

PSP 072: Helping Kids with Anxiety & OCD Survive the Summer

The stress of school is finally over! No more homework battles, no more school refusal! Just pure relaxation. But summer isn’t always as easy as it seems for kids with anxiety and OCD.
When a child is not busy with after school activities, projects and huge assignments, their mind is available for other things. And more often than not those “other things” aren’t pretty. New anxiety themes pop up. New compulsions surface. Old What Ifs take hold. When there are no distractions anxiety and OCD can take center stage. So how can you save their summer and your sanity?

PSP 070: When Anxiety & OCD Starve our Kids: ARFID and Restrictive Eating

PSP 070: When Anxiety & OCD Starve our Kids: ARFID and Restrictive Eating

There is nothing worse than watching your child starve to death. It can creep up slowly or happen overnight. Meals are missed. Favorite foods are no longer favored. Plate after plate, meal after meal goes untouched. Perhaps initially you chalk it up to “picky eating” but then you realize it is something much more. Welcome to the world of Avoidant/ Restrictive Food Intake Disorder, also known as ARFID.

Ask the Child Therapist Episode 78 Kid Edition: The Biggest Lie Child OCD Tells Kids: You Can Stop Bad Things From Happening

Ask the Child Therapist Episode 78 Kid Edition: The Biggest Lie Child OCD Tells Kids: You Can Stop Bad Things From Happening

Your child can’t wear certain clothes. They have to walk in certain patterns. They touch here. They touch there. All in an effort to ward off something bad from happening. Are they crazy? Psychotic. Absolutely not. They know these behaviors are irrational. They get that wearing a shirt isn’t going to ward off bad luck. And yet, they feel an intense urge to do it anyway. This is the trap child OCD sets for our kids. This is the prison our children live in.

Ask the Child Therapist Episode 77 Kid Edition: Do You Have a Child Who Pulls Hair or Picks Skin? Have Them Watch This.

Ask the Child Therapist Episode 77 Kid Edition: Do You Have a Child Who Pulls Hair or Picks Skin? Have Them Watch This.

You look over at your daughter and she is pulling her hair out one by one. Your son picks his scabs until they bleed. How are you supposed to stop a child who pulls hair or picks skin? You can’t be with them twenty-four hours a day. You’ve tried every approach, and nothing is working. Join the club. Hair pulling (Trichotillomania) and skin picking (Excoriation Disorder) are two very difficult Body Focused Repetitive Behaviors (BFRBs) that are hard to stop.

Ask the Child Therapist Episode 76 Kid Edition: How to Help Kids with OCD Stop Obsessive Thoughts

Ask the Child Therapist Episode 76 Kid Edition: How to Help Kids with OCD Stop Obsessive Thoughts

How to Help Kids with OCD Stop Obsessive Thoughts Your child is consumed with upsetting thoughts. You have tried to ensure them they are okay. You’ve tried to distract them. But no matter how hard you try, you are not able to help your child. Night after night, day after day they are asking you for reassurance. Asking you to tell them they are okay. […]