There has been a marked increase in anxiety in children over recent years. No matter the cause, parents and children need guidance in overcoming worry and anxiety.
Braver Stronger Smarter by Sissy Goff is a book designed for girls and offers help in overcoming worry and anxiety.
This is a book to be read together with your girls as there is quite a bit of information to be absorbed. Goff sets out three rules for reading this book:
- Go Slow. Take one chapter at a time, going at your pace. The important thing is to work through each idea so that your girl is better able to win her fight against worry.
- Don’t Give Up. If it seems to be taking longer than you would like to beat off your worry, don’t get discouraged. Keep going and don’t quit.
- Have fun! Enjoy the various exercises and you will find yourself feeling braver and stronger and smarter as you go.
The book is broken down into three sections: Understanding. Help. Hope.
Understanding helps your girl to grasp the concepts of worry and anxiety. It addresses why they worry. The “Worry Monster” concept is introduced which will help them to learn more about worry and weaken their worries.
“Cognitive behavioral therapy basically means that when you change the way you think (about worry), it changes the way you feel (about worry), which changes the you act (in response to worry).”
(page 38)
Help is the section which will introduce the way worry affects your body, your mind, and your heart. Goff brings tools for your girls to learn to protect them in each area and effectively fight off anxiety.
In the section on Hope, your girl will learn that trouble is normal and to be expected in life. She will also come to learn there are many promises to be found in God’s Word which can fill her heart and mind with hope.
“God is right by your side, so you can take heart. And you can take courage He gives you to face any worries that come your way.”
(page 87)
This is a book to be pulled out whenever anxiety may raise up its head. Each and every time your girl will grow in the knowledge God has created her to be brave and strong and smart.
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Today I am joining … Heart Encouragement and Let’s Have Coffee and Booknificent Thursday and Book Nook .
This sounds like a great book. It is sad to see so may children with anxiety issues. Thank you for sharing such an excellent resource!
This is good stuff, Joanne, and it reminds me of a quote I scribbled on a 3×5 and have been carrying around with me and pondering. Roughly quoted, it points out the hilarity of expecting all our children to be “above average.” Statistically, of course, it’s impossible! And yet we pile on the pressure…
I think anxiety is on the increase for many of us – not just children. Sadly, this is the result of our “do it all” society and the pressure to achieve. This book would be wonderful for my great niece, whom I just saw at Thanksgiving. Thanks for the recommendation!
I remember reading an article about a decade ago saying that a high number of Kindergarten children were suffering from anxiety and stress. Sad. Stress and worry and on the rise and we need books like this. As parents and as children. If we can teach our children how to deal with stress and worry at their age, they will be farther ahead than many of us.