Reduce Your Child’s Anxiety With Anxiety Eater
If you have a child who is struggling with anxiety, consider giving him a soft toy that will eat up his worries.
Anxiety Eaters is a modern monstrous version of Guatemalan dolls that children use to share their worries before putting them under their pillows at night. Guatemalan worry dolls are said to give sleeping children the wisdom they need to overcome worries. With these new closed-mouth versions, kids (or their parents) write or draw their worries and then stick a paper into the Worry Eater’s mouth so that it can hold on to the child’s worries.
Anxiety eaters come in a wide variety of shapes, colors, and sizes, from small (about 8-10 inches) to large (about 12-14 inches).
Of course, if your child isn’t struggling with more than normal childish concerns, the Anxiety Eater might just serve as just another toy. On the other hand, if your child is struggling with intense anxiety, Worry Eater is unlikely to be a panacea. Instead, think of it as one of many possible tools to help children learn to identify their problems and deal with them in a healthy way.
Another great resource for parents of children with anxiety is psychologist and writer Karen Young, who has written extensively about anxiety for both parents and children . This article – “ Anxiety in Children: A Metaphor to Put You in Their Place ” is a great place to start.