Dear Mom & Dad, I Have Anxiety

By Corine Toren

Ever wonder what's really going on inside your child's mind? Dear Mom & Dad, I Have Anxiety gives parents a glimpse of what it's like to be a child struggling with anxiety. The book includes the author's personal narrative as a child who grew up with anxiety, while also offering advice for parents about what to do during their children's toughest and most anxiety-driven moments. What makes Dear Mom & Dad, I Have Anxiety truly unique is that it is a parenting book completely written in the point of view of a child.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Corine Toren
• Release date: Jul 8, 2016
• ISBN: 9781311374622

Corine Toren

Corine Toren is a new author! She is extremely passionate about writing, and has been pursuing a writing career since she was very young. Corine hopes to write more books, screenplays for film and television, and maybe even a musical one day!

Book preview

Dear Mom & Dad,

I Have Anxiety

A Book For Parents From A Child’s Perspective

Corine Toren

Copyright © 2016. All Rights Reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, or by any information storage and retrieval system without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of very brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

A Letter From The Author

Welcome! Thank you for taking the time to read this book. I am so grateful to be able to share my experiences with anxiety. So many kids, teens, and even adults stay silent about their anxiety, and suffer quietly. Because of that, their loved ones will never know that they are suffering.

Of course it’s no one’s fault that people struggle, but I believe it’s important for those people to know that they are not alone. I wrote this book because I want you, the reader, no matter what you’re going through or struggling with, to know that you are not alone. I want you to understand what anxiety is and how difficult it can be to live with sometimes. When you understand that, you can show others who are struggling that they are not alone; you are there for them. A lot of what people need is just for someone to say, I care.

When I was in second grade, my teacher taught me that a little glue goes a long way. It seems silly, but this motto can really be applied to many aspects of life. A little care can go a long way. Just a smile can go a long way. You never know how much you affected someone with just a smile, or just saying something like, I appreciate you, or I’m always here for you. People need to know that someone that they trust truly cares about them.

With that said, all of the information I give throughout this book is completely my opinion, and comes from my own real experiences. I am not a doctor, psychologist, or professional in any capacity. All of the advice and facts I give about anxiety is solely based on my experiences struggling with anxiety. I really just wanted to share my challenges and memories in the hopes that people will relate, and hopefully I can help others in the process.

For a long time, I felt alone. I felt like no one would ever understand what I was going through and the pain I was enduring. It took a long while for me to understand that I was not the only one having scary thoughts, or having a difficult time getting out of bed, or living in fear. There are so many of us with anxious minds that battle very similar behaviors and thoughts. No one should have to live feeling like they’re completely alone in their struggles.

Writing this book meant so much to me, and for my mental health. I will be so thankful if writing about my experiences benefits someone else. I hope this book serves its purpose, and reaches out to you or a loved one. Please enjoy!

Table of Contents

A Letter From The Author

Chapter 1. Introductions

Chapter 2. Triggers

Chapter 3. Lacking a Purpose

Chapter 4. Pressures

Chapter 5. Extra Support

Chapter 6. What is Motivation?

Chapter 7. How Do You Win?

Chapter 1. Introduction

Dear Mom and Dad, and anyone else reading this, I have anxiety, but guess what? So do millions of other people in the world. I have struggled in the past, but I have come a long way. I’ve overcome so many obstacles created by my anxieties. Today, I am proud of all of my accomplishments, and I’d like to share some of them with you. This is my story:

Since I was younger, I knew that I thought in a different way than most children. Once I matured, I began to obsess over the unknown of what was to come after death. I envied my carefree peers, while I craved control. After seeking help, I grew to realize that living with anxiety is not so abnormal. Some people have low cholesterol, some are allergic to peanuts, and some, like me, have an anxious mind. Honestly, I would pick anxiety over a peanut allergy any day. When I first started seeing my therapist, I was still feeling alone and misunderstood. I refused to talk to my parents about what I was going through because I was convinced that they would not understand. While I was learning to cope with my anxiety and irrational fears, I thought about how many other teenagers shared the same thoughts as me. I felt like I wanted to let others know that they are not alone in what they are going through.

While my mind was beginning a tug-of-war with my anxiety, I tried to help my parents understand my internal conflicts. It was difficult for them to sympathize with me, and I felt that they did not know how to handle my thought processes. My experience with my parents inspired me to write in order to show other parents how to help their children who have anxiety.

So this book is my gift to you. Actually, it is mainly a gift for myself (because I’m very self-centered). As much as I want to help you and your child, I cannot promise you that I will succeed. To me this book is a gift because it allowed me to set a goal for myself. Once I set that goal for myself, I endeavored to achieve it. My goal (aka this book) motivated me to get out of bed today. My goal motivated me to give myself a better life. My goal for this book is to show you how powerful the mind is, and how you can overpower it.

This is definitely not a how-to book. I’m not going to teach you a lesson or tell you how I think you should parent your kids. Every parent has his or her own method, and that’s okay. I wrote this book to share my experiences of the way I grew up and how I became the person that I am, but most of all, how I came to accept the person that I am. There are so many parents out there in the world who believe that it is their duty to teach other parents how to be a good mom or dad. In all honesty, I don’t believe in that. The people that read those types of books are either nervous about having children (which is common), or are under the impression that they are doing something wrong. Here’s the thing: Parents-if you feel insecure about the way you raise your children, your kids are