The Roots of Anxiety

The National Education Association reports that 96% of high school students say that anxiety is a problem in their peers, and two-thirds of college students report “overwhelming anxiety.” 20% of all children in schools have a finely tuned nervous system (the trait of high sensitivity), and they often present as ANXIOUS children. Anxiety is a pattern that begins very early in childhood, usually in our more sensitive children with highly reactive brains.

Investing in Our Future

With an understanding of innate temperament and by teaching children and teens to honor and manage their sensitivity, we can dramatically reduce anxiety in school environments.

Parenting books, teacher training, and health profession graduate schools tend to ignore innate traits and temperament to the detriment of the families and the professionals as well as the children they nurture.

Highly sensitive “orchid” children are engaging and wonderful students who often struggle with overwhelm, anxiety, or withdrawing… and can become challenging for teachers or their parents.

Five Different Programs to Fit Your Needs

• Resiliency for Our Orchid Children: Anxious and Sensitive Youth
• Anxious, Overwhelmed, and Sensitive Kids:
• Understanding, Teaching, & Parenting
• Dandelions and Orchids: Understanding the Uniquely Sensitive Children in Our Lives
• Highly Sensitive: Discover the Hidden Advantage for Sensitive and Anxious Youth

For promoting the event, these titles and descriptions can be mixed and matched to best appeal to your community.

For Parents, Teachers, and Health Professionals.

Half-, full-, or multi-day presentations for mental health professionals, organizations, schools, health care providers. Keynote addresses for conferences, assemblies, and parent education.

What we teach children about their highly reactive brains or finely tuned nervous systems makes a huge difference in whether they go on to become anxious or depressed teens and adults.

High sensitivity is an innate trait found in one out of five people.

It is not an autism spectrum disorder, nor is it a mental illness, although the highly sensitive can have other problems and are often misunderstood and misdiagnosed due to the nature of the trait.

Highly sensitive children and teens may present as shy, anxious, distracted, depressed, emotional, or even hyper.

A Message of Hope

These programs – based on the book, The Highly Sensitive Child, by Elaine Aron, Ph.D., psychologist and pioneer in the study of this trait – focus on caring for and raising highly sensitive children and teens.

A psychotherapist and certified consultant on high sensitivity, Alane Freund brings considerable experience as an expert in the field.

Like orchids, sensitive children who are carefully nurtured grow into unique, thoughtful leaders who can become the world’s change-makers as philosophers, artists, politicians, authors, teachers, healers, and spiritual advisors.

Individual or small group consultation for your staff!

I also offer small group and individual consultation for mental health professionals and school districts (including school counselors, psychologists, nurses, and special education staff).

Most often these are done through video conferencing. Consultation can be ongoing or single meeting.

A balanced and well supported staff is foundation of a nurturing environment for children.

Are you ready to transform your school and parent community?

We can make a huge difference with just a little effort!