When worry thoughts, frustration or overwhelming feelings strike, your child (or you, if your child needs help) can write them down on a piece of paper and store them away in their worry box (or whatever container you chose). A simple but effective variation on the worry box is the worry journal, which encourages children to record their worries and anxieties as they come up daily. This approach creates a more structured system to deal with anxious feelings. By using the worry jar, at some point your child will likely tell you that he or she is no longer worrying about something he or she had previously put in the jar. This is the exciting part for your child as this discovery represents success at overcoming a worry! Celebrate these moments together and make a big deal out of it. Have your child remove the worry and rip it up. It will allow you to talk about emotions (worries, frustrations, anger, insecurities) while you engage in a fun activity. Similarly, you may also notice that your child decides to skip worry time some days as he or she feels they don’t need it. This is another sign of success to be reinforced and recognized!

It tells the story of a little girl who carries around a huge bag filled with worries. (‘The metaphor is little monsters). Sometimes when we feel worried, frustrated, or overwhelmed it may help us to store our problems away. P.P.S. Sometime ago I wrote the foreword and collaborated with author Elaheh Bos on A Spot of Blue, a story for young children about anxiety, in which this coping technique and others are shared. You may want to take a look! To help with sleep, have your child write down her worries just before bedtime and then put them into the worry box to be safely held. She can also put the worry box under her bed so she can write down worries that might bother her in the middle of the night. Combining the worry box with worry time Should you look at what your child writes? Technically, no. The box is meant to be a safe place where the child can write down anything and not have it “discovered.” Instead, you could set up a worry time when your child can discuss her worries with you. Worry time is also a form of containment because it restricts the time the child can dwell on her worries with an adult. You can set up the time specially for the child, say from 4:00 to 4:20 every afternoon. If at 4:20 your child is not through discussing her worries, ask her to write down the worries and put them into the worry box. Tell her that she can take them out to discuss tomorrow at the same time.

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Worry Box: In this post, you will learn what a worry box is, why it works, and what the best fit could be for your child. You will also learn how to make a cute Worry Monster Box, a fun activity for home or the classroom. What is a Worry Box?

In my clinical work, I have found that being creative and making the strategies concrete and come to life improves their effectiveness and usefulness, especially with young children. I encourage you to do the same in helping your child. The Worry Jar If you are looking for mindfulness crafts to do some work with your kids or students this can be a great project.

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Dr Lucy Russell is a UK clinical psychologist who works with children and families. Her work involves both therapeutic support and autism assessments. She is the Clinical Director of Everlief Child Psychology, and also worked in the National Health Service for many years. Your monster could be any color and have anything added to it. There are endless ideas on the web if you look under “monsters made out of tissue boxes” or just DIY monsters. Let this monster be your child’s creation. The important concept is to have a mouth or a slot where your child can insert a paper with a written or drawn worry. How to use a worry box If your child often feels worried or anxious, and it’s upsetting them or making it difficult for them to think about or do other things, you can try making a worry box together. Express their feelings by writing them on a paper (they can also make a drawing, or you can help them write it down) A worry box can be a great way to help children cope with their worries and big feelings. It provides a tangible place for them to deposit their concerns, which can be particularly beneficial for younger children who may struggle with abstract concepts.