Parenting Anxiety
Breaking the Cycle of Worry and Raising Resilient Kids
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- Pre-Order
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- Expected Jan 20, 2026
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
A timely, practical, and innovative look at the relationship between parent and child anxiety, with actionable strategies to help parents break the cycle—from a clinical psychologist with expertise in treating anxiety disorders in children, adolescents, and in parents.
How do you raise resilient kids in this age of uncertainty? And how do you parent your kids if you yourself are anxious?
Parenting is hard, even more so if you struggle with anxiety or have children who do. Seeking guidance means confronting an explosion of content shaped by cultural ideals of how “good” parents should manage anxiety. How do you make sense of this avalanche of advice and support your child’s mental health—or, at the very least, not make things worse?
Much of this content, unfortunately, encourages parents to act in ways that actually increase the risk of child anxiety in the long term. In trying to protect kids from anxiety, loving parents may block the very paths kids must take to build courage and confidence.
Dr. Meredith Elkins, a clinical child psychologist and faculty member at Harvard Medical School, demystifies anxiety and empowers parents to rethink “negative” emotions like fear, sadness, and guilt. A parent herself, Dr. Elkins argues that modern parenting pressures are major contributors to the current state of parent and child anxiety. She urges parents to clarify their values and embrace a “love and limits” approach to anxiety—balancing compassionate support with healthy boundaries while resisting the urge to shield children from every discomfort.
With warmth and understanding, Dr. Elkins provides concrete, evidence-based guidance to help families experiencing normal levels of anxiety, as well as those coping with anxiety disorders. This indispensable resource offers readers a road map for addressing anxiety in children and parents, and promotes adaptability and resilience across all stages of development.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Clinical psychologist Elkins's insightful debut examines anxiety in parent-child dynamics. Many well-meaning parents, she argues, try to protect their kids from anxiety but, in doing so, block them from learning how to cope with the emotion. Elkins encourages parents to validate the feeling of anxiety rather than attempting to suppress or solve it. She explains that Western parenting culture often encourages intensive parenting that in turn exacerbates anxiety. In one example, she recalls working with a 16-year-old whose parents tried to shield him from uncomfortable situations, not realizing their overinvolvement was partly responsible for his worry he wouldn't be able to function alone in a crisis. Instead of being overprotective, Elkins recommends parents cultivate psychological flexibility in their children, providing them with tools to make decisions that feel right to them when faced with unexpected situations. To treat severe anxiety, Elkins suggests treatments such as exposure therapy (for example, having kids with social anxiety practice going into stores and interacting with cashiers), and reducing dependence on "safety behaviors" (such as only socializing at parties with alcohol). Throughout, Elkins provides accessible tools to reduce anxiety in both children and parents and backs up her clinical experience with current research. The result is a comprehensive road map for managing anxiety that will enlighten and empower.
