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August 16, 2021

Is it time to get rid of homework? Mental health experts weigh in

by Sara M Moniuszko

It's no secret that kids hate homework. And as students grapple with an ongoing pandemic that has had a wide-range of mental health impacts, is it time schools start listening to their pleas over workloads?

Some teachers are turning to social media to take a stand against homework .

Tiktok user @misguided.teacher says he doesn't assign it because the "whole premise of homework is flawed."

For starters, he says he can't grade work on "even playing fields" when students' home environments can be vastly different.

"Even students who go home to a peaceful house, do they really want to spend their time on busy work? Because typically that's what a lot of homework is, it's busy work," he says in the video that has garnered 1.6 million likes. "You only get one year to be 7, you only got one year to be 10, you only get one year to be 16, 18."

Mental health experts agree heavy work loads have the potential do more harm than good for students, especially when taking into account the impacts of the pandemic. But they also say the answer may not be to eliminate homework altogether.

Emmy Kang, mental health counselor at Humantold, says studies have shown heavy workloads can be "detrimental" for students and cause a "big impact on their mental, physical and emotional health."

"More than half of students say that homework is their primary source of stress, and we know what stress can do on our bodies," she says, adding that staying up late to finish assignments also leads to disrupted sleep and exhaustion.

Cynthia Catchings, a licensed clinical social worker and therapist at Talkspace, says heavy workloads can also cause serious mental health problems in the long run, like anxiety and depression.

And for all the distress homework causes, it's not as useful as many may think, says Dr. Nicholas Kardaras, a psychologist and CEO of Omega Recovery treatment center.

"The research shows that there's really limited benefit of homework for elementary age students, that really the school work should be contained in the classroom," he says.

For older students, Kang says homework benefits plateau at about two hours per night.

"Most students, especially at these high-achieving schools, they're doing a minimum of three hours, and it's taking away time from their friends from their families, their extracurricular activities. And these are all very important things for a person's mental and emotional health."

Catchings, who also taught third to 12th graders for 12 years, says she's seen the positive effects of a no homework policy while working with students abroad.

"Not having homework was something that I always admired from the French students (and) the French schools, because that was helping the students to really have the time off and really disconnect from school ," she says.

The answer may not be to eliminate homework completely, but to be more mindful of the type of work students go home with, suggests Kang, who was a high-school teacher for 10 years.

"I don't think (we) should scrap homework, I think we should scrap meaningless, purposeless busy work-type homework. That's something that needs to be scrapped entirely," she says, encouraging teachers to be thoughtful and consider the amount of time it would take for students to complete assignments.

The pandemic made the conversation around homework more crucial

Mindfulness surrounding homework is especially important in the context of the last two years. Many students will be struggling with mental health issues that were brought on or worsened by the pandemic, making heavy workloads even harder to balance.

"COVID was just a disaster in terms of the lack of structure. Everything just deteriorated," Kardaras says, pointing to an increase in cognitive issues and decrease in attention spans among students. "School acts as an anchor for a lot of children, as a stabilizing force, and that disappeared."

But even if students transition back to the structure of in-person classes, Kardaras suspects students may still struggle after two school years of shifted schedules and disrupted sleeping habits.

"We've seen adults struggling to go back to in-person work environments from remote work environments. That effect is amplified with children because children have less resources to be able to cope with those transitions than adults do," he explains.

'Get organized' ahead of back-to-school

In order to make the transition back to in-person school easier, Kang encourages students to "get good sleep, exercise regularly (and) eat a healthy diet."

To help manage workloads, she suggests students "get organized."

"There's so much mental clutter up there when you're disorganized... sitting down and planning out their study schedules can really help manage their time," she says.

Breaking assignments up can also make things easier to tackle.

"I know that heavy workloads can be stressful, but if you sit down and you break down that studying into smaller chunks, they're much more manageable."

If workloads are still too much, Kang encourages students to advocate for themselves.

"They should tell their teachers when a homework assignment just took too much time or if it was too difficult for them to do on their own," she says. "It's good to speak up and ask those questions. Respectfully, of course, because these are your teachers. But still, I think sometimes teachers themselves need this feedback from their students."

©2021 USA Today Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

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Anxiety Therapy: Types, Techniques, and Worksheets

Such anticipatory anxiety makes enjoying each moment a difficult endeavor. Unfortunately, anxiety disorders represent a serious and prevalent problem for children and adults worldwide.

The lifetime prevalence rate for anxiety disorders is estimated at 33.7% of the population—an estimate that has remained quite stable over the years (Bandelow & Michaelis, 2015).

Overall, anxiety disorders represent the most common psychiatric disorders within the general population (Öst, 2008), and the number one mental disorder among women (Chambala, 2008).

While anxiety may serve a useful purpose (e.g., alerting us to dangers), too much anxiety impairs functioning and performance in certain activities (Yerkes & Dodson, 1908).

If you are depressed you are living in the past. If you are anxious you are living in the future. If you are at peace you are living in the present.

When anxiety reaches the clinical level, it interferes with the ability to live life to the fullest, often causing significant social and occupational impairment. Anxiety disorders cover a lot of territories:

• Generalized anxiety disorder
• Panic disorders
• Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
• Specific phobias
• Social anxiety disorder
• Obsessive-compulsive disorder

Anxiety disorders may be terrifying for their victims, causing physiological, cognitive, and emotional symptoms (Hart, 1999). Those experiencing panic attacks often end up in the emergency room, believing they are dying. It is also common for anxiety disorders to occur concomitantly with other disorders such as depression.

On the positive side, there are several effective therapeutic approaches for anxiety disorders, as well as a variety of techniques and worksheets individuals may apply themselves.

This article will describe these approaches while also addressing the specific issues of social and childhood anxiety disorders. By shedding light on anxiety disorders and their treatment, the goal is to provide useful suggestions, tools, and above all, hope for individuals negatively impacted by these conditions.

Before you continue, we thought you might like to download our three Positive Psychology Exercises for free . These science-based exercises will explore fundamental aspects of positive psychology including strengths, values, and self-compassion, and will give you the tools to enhance the wellbeing of your clients, students, or employees.

This Article Contains:

Can anxiety be cured with therapy, 6+ popular anxiety therapy options, exposure treatment for anxiety, 14+ techniques for treating anxiety, 9 useful worksheets for your sessions, helpful exercises, a look at anxiety group therapy + ideas, a note on art therapy for anxiety, 17 creative art and music therapy ideas, treating child anxiety, a note on e-therapy for anxiety, a take-home message.

While anxiety covers a range of areas and may be debilitating, it is highly treatable.

Despite the enormous stressors of modern society, there are ways to respond without succumbing to serious anxiety problems. Anxiety has been described as “the absence of the happy messengers that keep us tranquil” (Hart, 1999, p. 5).

Rebuilding such tranquility is possible thanks to a number of psychological treatment approaches. This article will focus on the non-pharmaceutical approaches that have been found effective for reducing and even curing individuals of anxiety disorders and associated symptomatology.

Man is not worried by real problems so much as by his imagined anxieties about real problems.

Severe anxiety is generally more a reflection of worry about anxiety itself as opposed to the problem underneath.

For example, an individual with a public speaking phobia is typically terrified of looking like a fool in front of an audience because of their anxiety symptoms (e.g., hyperventilating, throwing up, passing out, sweating, stuttering, etc.).

It is not fear of public speaking per se that is the real problem, but rather, the anticipation of associated anxiety that causes distress. It is by confronting such anxiety that individuals often experience relief.

Although the nature of intervention needs to be individualized based on the particular type of anxiety disorder, the following anxiety treatments can be effective for many people.

1. Cognitive therapy

Cognitive therapy is the most common psychological treatment for anxiety disorders.

This approach involves working with therapists to identify the feelings, thoughts, and beliefs that impact an individual’s ability to modify behaviors. For example, a person with a phobia of dogs would work to uncover the irrational beliefs that surround this phobia, such as the inherent danger in approaching all dogs.

Cognitive therapy is typically combined with behavior therapy to address beliefs and cognitions in conjunction with working toward ways of changing behaviors.

For example, the patient with the dog phobia might try approaching docile dogs while also working with a therapist on their irrational fears. This is an approach known as exposure therapy.

2. Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is widely used for anxiety disorders because it encompasses each of the underlying tenets that are related to clinical anxiety.

CBT is grounded in the following ideas:

• Mental health disorders involve key learning and information processing mechanisms (e.g., irrational beliefs about perceived dangers).
• Behaviors are better understood by exposing their true functions (e.g., examining the belief that sweating and heart palpitations will result in death).
• New adaptive learning experiences can be used to substitute prior nonadaptive learning processes (e.g., developing new beliefs about a feared object after increasing exposure).
• Clinicians take on a scientific approach to therapy by creating hypotheses about patients’ cognitive and behavioral patterns, intervening and observing outcomes, and reframing original hypotheses as needed (Hazlett-Stevens & Craske, 2004).

In this way, the CBT approach is tailored to the individual needs of the client and modified based on their progress (Hazlett-Stevens & Craske, 2004). CBT is grounded in the assumption that “emotional [i.e., anxiety] disorders are maintained by cognitive factors, and that psychological treatment leads to changes in these factors through cognitive and behavioral techniques” (Hofmann & Smits, 2008, p. 621).

CBT contains a variety of potential components:

• Social skills training
• Cognitive restructuring
• Problem-solving training
• Self-monitoring or journaling of symptoms
• Relaxation training

Also, it may be implemented via brief therapy or over a longer duration depending upon the client and their presenting problems.

Meta-analyses have determined that CBT is an effective approach for the treatment of anxiety disorders (Butler, Chapman, Forman, & Beck, 2006; Deacon & Abramowitz, 2004; Hofmann & Smits, 2008; Stewart & Chambless, 2009).

In addition, CBT implemented by primary physicians with minimal mental health training (i.e., ‘The Calm Program’) has been reported as an acceptable and encouraging way for primary doctors to help anxious patients who might otherwise remain untreated (Craske et al., 2009).

3. Attention bias modification

Attention bias modification is a newly emerging approach that involves the use of computer-based attention training with patients with anxiety to affect hyper-attention to perceived threats in the environment (Bar-Haim, 2010).

In this way, problematic attentional biases can be modified to reduce anxiety.

Attention bias modification is similar to CBT because it involves exposure to feared objects or situations, but it is also unique because of its focus on specific attentional bias targets (Hakamata et al., 2010).

Although studies investigating this approach are minimal, attention bias modification represents a promising new approach for the treatment of anxiety disorders (Hakamata et al., 2010).

4. Hypnosis

Hypnosis has also been found to benefit individuals dealing with anxiety.

Hypnosis is “a state of consciousness involving focused attention and reduced peripheral awareness characterized by an enhanced capacity for response to suggestion” (Elkins, Barabasz, Council, & Spiegel, 2014, p. 6).

Hypnosis is like meditation, but with added objectives based on the needs of the individual. It may involve varying states of consciousness during which attention is focused and distractions are tuned out (McNeal, 2019).

Importantly, hypnosis is not an out-of-control experience, as the patient has power over and awareness of what’s going on. Additionally, its goals are achievable within a minimal time commitment (Straub & Bowman, 2016).

Hypnosis (including self-hypnosis) has been widely used within the mental health field (Valentine, Milling, Clark, & Moriarty, 2019). It has also been reported as a useful tool for patients dealing with the following:

• Dental anxiety (Potter, 2013)
• Surgical anxiety (Capafons & Mendoza, 2009)
• Anxiety related to sports competitions (Mendoza, 2010)
• Social phobia (Capafons & Mendoza, 2013)
• Anxiety disorders in general (Hammond, 2010)

5. Psychodynamic therapy

Psychodynamic therapy as a therapeutic approach often conjures up antiquated images of psychiatrist couches and patients reliving early childhood experiences. Psychodynamic therapy, which is rooted in Freudian theory, involves building strong therapist–patient alliances in which patients may develop the psychological tools needed to deal with fears and anxieties.

Although treatment may be lengthy, short-term psychodynamic therapy also has been reported as an effective approach for anxiety.

For example, one study reported that a 30-session psychodynamic treatment was helpful for the treatment of generalized anxiety – although this approach was less successful than CBT (Leichsenring et al., 2009).

Additionally, in a study examining long-term follow-up after psychodynamic therapy, significant reductions were reported for anxiety symptoms, with short-term approaches producing quicker improvements and long-term approaches providing longer lasting improvements (Knekt et al., 2008).

Finally, in a study comparing psychodynamic therapy with CBT, both approaches produced significant positive effects for social anxiety (Bögels, Wijts, Oort, & Sallaerts, 2014).

In contrast, a comparison of CBT and short-term psychodynamic therapy for patients with excessive health-related anxiety indicated significant improvements only for those who received CBT (Sørensen, Birket-Smith, Wattar, Buemann, & Salkovskis, 2010).

6. Vagus nerve stimulation

In this unique treatment approach, an anticonvulsant device sends electrical stimulation to the vagus nerve. The vagus nerve is targeted because of its ability to modulate anxiety.

Although this approach is typically used for epilepsy and treatment-resistant depression, studies have also demonstrated its effectiveness for treatment-resistant anxiety disorders (George et al., 2008).

Additionally, studies in which vagus nerve stimulation was used to treat epilepsy or depression have reported significant reductions in anxiety symptoms (Chavel, Westerveld, & Spencer, 2003; Rush et al., 2000).

Importantly, vagus nerve stimulation is an invasive approach that is used as an add-on treatment for patients who have not achieved success with CBT and other forms of therapy.

With exposure therapy, the patient is exposed to their feared object or situation, such as flying.

Such exposure is typically gradual, with the exposure beginning with less threatening stimuli and gradually working its way toward increasingly feared stimuli (Wolpe, 1958).

This graduated exposure therapy is grounded in behavioral psychology, with the goal of desensitizing the patient to their feared trigger.

An example of graduated exposure therapy is that of an individual with arachnophobia. In this case, the patient might work with a therapist as follows:

• The patient first watches a film with giant spiders.
• The patient then views a large but harmless spider in a glass case across the room.
• The patient approaches and looks directly into the glass case.
• The patient works toward actually handling the spider.

Of course, the nature and duration of the arachnophobia exposure therapy will depend upon the patient’s individual symptoms and needs.

If systematic desensitization is used, gradual exposure will also involve relaxation techniques as a way of pairing the feared stimulus with a state that is not compatible with anxiety. Therefore, the patient might experience relaxation training while viewing spider images.

Like CBT, there are different ways in which exposure therapy may be implemented depending upon the client and diagnosis. For example, exposure therapy may be in vivo, as is the case with the live spider. Simulated exposure is a similar technique in which the patient experiences a proxy of the feared stimuli. For example, viewing a film of spiders is a simulated exposure.

Recent technology has provided therapists with the tools to implement more realistic simulations via virtual reality exposure therapy .

In such cases, patients wear headsets in which they experience a highly realistic virtual space. This technique is useful for several anxiety disorders and phobias; for example, military patients with PTSD can use virtual reality to simulate battlefield experiences.

Research studies have shown support for virtual reality exposure therapy in the treatment of anxiety disorders. For example, in a comprehensive meta-analysis, researchers found significant positive effects for virtual reality exposure therapy across outcomes (Powers & Emmelkamp, 2008).

Another type of exposure therapy is flooding. ’ With this technique, patients confront their fears via simulated or in vivo exposure that is not gradual. Instead, patients are rapidly exposed to fear-provoking stimuli until they feel less anxious. For example, a patient with a bridge phobia is taken to a bridge and asked to stand on it until their anxiety wanes.

Flooding is based on the idea that without engaging in avoidance, the patient’s fear will become extinguished (Abramowitz, Deacon, & Whiteside, 2019). Therapists generally prefer gradual exposure over flooding because the latter is intense and may have negative repercussions for patients not prepared for such direct and immediate exposure to feared stimuli.

Other forms of exposure therapy include prolonged exposure , which was designed for the treatment of PTSD. With prolonged exposure, both repeated in vivo and imaginal exposure are combined to enable the patient to experience trauma without the feared outcomes.

This technique has been widely used for the treatment of PTSD and is considered by many clinicians as the best option for this disorder (Van Minnen, Harned, Zoellner, & Mills, 2012).

In a meta-analysis examining prolonged exposure among PTSD patients, individuals in the prolonged exposure group experienced better results than 86% of those in control condition (Powers, Halpern, Ferenschak, Gillihan, & Foa, 2010).

Acceptance-based therapy is another CBT approach sometimes used together with in vivo or simulated exposure therapy. The goal of this relatively new approach is to help patients increase their willingness to experience anxiety as part of their exposure to feared situations (England et al., 2012).

For example, in a study examining the use of acceptance-based exposure therapy for individuals with public speaking phobias, participants received group-based therapy in which they experienced public speaking exposure combined with acceptance-based treatment aimed at promoting acceptance of distressing emotions and sensations associated with public speaking (England et al., 2012).

Participants who received acceptance-based exposure therapy, which seeks to promote ‘psychological flexibility,’ experienced significant improvements in public speaking confidence, skills, and associated emotions (England et al., 2012).

If you want to conquer the anxiety of life, live in the moment, live in the breath.

Along with CBT and other therapist-implemented approaches for anxiety, various additional techniques may help to ease symptoms. Here is a list of ideas:

Mindfulness approaches involve a type of awareness in which a person pays attention to their feelings and thoughts in the moment and without judgment. It is an open-minded and totally accepting way of responding to thoughts (Kabat-Zinn, 2005).

Mindfulness techniques may be beneficial to patients with anxiety by helping to increase relaxation while removing negative or stressful judgments. Mindfulness may be enhanced by using various approaches, such as meditation, yoga, or deep-breathing exercises.

While mindfulness activities are often add-ons with CBT and other forms of therapy, there is recent evidence supporting their unique benefit for the reduction of anxiety (Blanck et al., 2018).

Engaging in aerobic exercise also represents a useful way to reduce physiological stress responses and improve mood (Sharma, Madaan, & Petty, 2006). While it may be difficult for an anxious person to find the motivation to exercise, its potential benefits make it worth the effort.

Physical activity is linked to reduced anxiety symptomatology, as well as improved cognitive functioning, life satisfaction, and psychological wellbeing (Carek, Laibstain, & Carek, 2011).

Exercise is beneficial for anxiety disorders, including obsessive-compulsive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and social anxiety disorder (Baldwin et al., 2014).

Exercise has also been associated with reduced anxiety symptoms among sedentary patients with medical conditions (Baldwin et al., 2014).

Exercise is especially attractive because it’s cost-effective and may be performed in a variety of ways. While exercise may not reap the same benefits for patients with anxiety as CBT or other psychological approaches, it may enhance the impact of such treatment.

Along with mindfulness techniques and aerobic exercise, here are a variety of things that individuals can do to reduce anxiety:

• Get involved in a hobby you love (e.g., baking, gardening, reading, painting, etc.).
• Listen to your favorite music.
• Journal your feelings.
• Take a warm bath.
• Make sure to eat healthy, as junk food can have adverse effects on physical and psychological health.
• Get enough sleep.
• Go out in nature.
• Avoid emotional triggers (e.g., people and places that consistently increase your anxiety).
• Spend time with animals.
• Organize your home or workspace, as clutter may exacerbate anxiety.
• Watch caffeine and alcohol intake.
• Spend time with family and friends whom you enjoy.

Techniques for treating social anxiety

Social anxiety is a prevalent problem, with over 7% of Americans diagnosed with social anxiety disorder (Norton, 2012).

Social anxiety may take several forms, such as a fear of public speaking, social situations, or meeting new people.

Social anxiety stems from an individual’s fear of adverse judgments or scrutiny from others and the humiliation that follows. As such, social phobia may lead to significant problems within occupational, educational, and social domains, which often result in low self-esteem and loneliness.

The best treatment for social anxiety is CBT, with exposure therapy often recommended.

For example, an individual with public speaking anxiety might work on speaking in front of a few people and gradually work their way up to larger groups.

Socially anxious people may also benefit from social skills and relaxation training.

For example, in an in-depth meta-analysis, including 30 studies and 1,628 respondents, Acarturk, Cuijpers, van Straten, and de Graaf (2008) investigated various social anxiety treatments.

Therapy intervention methods included CBT, cognitive restructuring, exposure therapy, social skills training, and applied relaxation training.

The authors found the psychological treatments to be highly effective for social anxiety disorder, with no differences between treatment types (likely because so many studies used combined treatments). Lower effectiveness was noted for patients with more severe social anxiety disorder (Acarturk et al., 2008).

In another study, which was randomized with a one-year follow-up, Anderson et al. (2013) compared in vivo exposure with virtual reality exposure for the treatment of social anxiety.

Anderson et al. (2013) reported significant improvements at 12-month follow-up, with virtual reality therapy functioning equally well as in vivo exposure. Research also has indicated that attentional bias training for social anxiety is related to significant reductions in social anxiety symptoms (Schmidt, Richey, Buckner, & Timpano, 2009).

In sum, while social anxiety disorder often results in severe impairment, there are psychological treatments that have been found to diminish significantly associated symptomatology and enhance the quality of life for many individuals.

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There are numerous worksheets that may be useful for reducing anxiety. Here are several examples:

• The Anxiety Workbook : A 7-Week Plan to Overcome Anxiety, Stop Worrying, and End Panic (Cuncic, 2017)
• Jane’s Worry Elephant : A Self-Help Guide for Kids with Anxiety (Miller, 2019)
• The Worry Workbook for Kids : Helping Children to Overcome Anxiety and the Fear of Uncertainty (Khanna & Ledley, 2018)
• Conquer Anxiety Workbook for Teens : Find Peace From Worry, Panic, Fear, and Phobias (Chansard, 2019)
• The 5-Minute Anxiety Relief Journal : A Creative Way to Stop Freaking Out (Peterson, 2019)
• The Anxiety and Worry Workbook : The Cognitive Behavioral Solution (Clark & Beck, 2011)
• The Generalized Anxiety Disorder Workbook : A Comprehensive CBT Guide for Coping with Uncertainty, Worry, and Fear (Robichaud & Dugas, 2015)
• The Anxiety and Phobia Workbook (Bourne, 2015)
• Let That Sh*t Go : A Journal for Leaving Your Bullsh*t Behind and Creating a Happy Life (Sweeney, 2018)

Because such activities may be conducted as needed and for free, they represent highly feasible ways to deal with anxiety issues.

Many therapists will prescribe self-guided mindfulness and meditation exercises for clients to complete between in-person therapy sessions or as a tool to help during moments of intense anxiety.

With the rise in digital technologies, such as smartphones and blended care e-therapy platforms like Quenza (pictured here), the prescription of take-home interventions such as these is becoming increasingly more common and convenient.

While the potential value of self-guided exercise has face validity, standalone exercises performed outside of treatment intervention have rarely been researched.

However, in a meta-analysis of 18 studies, standalone exercises were found to be beneficial for the reduction of anxiety (Blanck et al., 2018).

The standalone mindfulness exercises included breathing meditation, sitting meditation, body scan (gradually attending to different parts of the body) and sound scan (mindfulness that adjusts responses to sounds so their aversive impact is reduced).

Blanck et al.’s (2018) study shows that there are positive ways for individuals to deal with their anxiety on their own, outside of a structured intervention.

If you are feeling anxious or stressed, you can search and apply various exercises based on your unique interests and needs. Here are some examples:

• Deep-breathing meditation
• Sitting meditation
• Body scan meditation
• Loving-kindness meditation
• Spiritual meditation
• Vipassana meditation
• Transcendental meditation
• Mantra meditation
• Walking meditation
• Buddhist meditation

Quick-start guide to anxiety treatment – Therapy in a Nutshell

Psychological treatment options for anxiety include both individual and group-based therapies.

Norton (2012) describes effective evidence-based approaches designed to help CBT therapists implement group-based interventions for patients with anxiety disorders.

Such group treatment approaches (e.g., exposure, cognitive restructuring, mindfulness, etc.) are useful for all anxiety disorders; there is no need to apply separate strategies for specific anxiety disorders (Norton, 2012).

For CBT group therapy to be effective, the group needs to be both cohesive and task focused. Other key group therapy factors include altruism, imitative behaviors, interpersonal learning, and installation of hope (Yalom, 1995).

While there is more research examining one-on-one CBT therapy for anxiety than for group therapy (Whitefield, 2010), the latter approach has some advantages:

• Cost-effectiveness
• The ability to reach more people
• May facilitate the normalization of behaviors (e.g., by seeing that others have the same problems)
• The acceptance of challenges that are elicited by peers versus the therapist
• Positive reinforcement by multiple people
• Exposure situations that are more easily recreated within a group setting
• The ability to exercise problem-solving skills by making suggestions to other group members (Whitefield, 2010)

While many individuals with anxiety disorders may benefit from group CBT, there are some people for whom group therapy is likely to be less effective, such as those with co-morbid psychological disorders, more severe and chronic presentation of problems, negative core beliefs, communication problems, interpersonal issues, active suicidal ideation, fear of group environments, extreme stress, or poor relationships (Moorey, 1996).

Additionally, individuals who lack the motivation to change or fail to comply with treatment are less likely to be a good match for group CBT (Moorey, 1996).

Group-based CBT as useful for the treatment of social anxiety disorders (Butler et al., 2018; Hedman et al., 2011).

In addition, preliminary research suggests that large-group CBT classes represent highly feasible and useful approaches for individuals with anxiety disorders (Palay et al., 2018).

In terms of key ingredients for group CBT as a treatment for social anxiety, researchers examined mechanisms for change for two group-based approaches: CBT, and mindfulness and acceptance-based therapy.

Results indicated that mindfulness and acceptance were fundamental mechanisms of change for both group approaches, whereas cognitive reappraisal was more important for CBT (Kocovski, Fleming, Hawley, Ho, & Antony, 2015).

Finally, a qualitative study examined perceptions among individuals with anxiety disorders who achieved benefits following group CBT (Abrahamsson, Nordling, & Michelsen et al., 2018).

Respondents described their anxiety as a lack of security and noted that creating a securing group environment involved the following themes:

• Sharing with others (e.g., getting to know others with similar problems)
• Knowledge given to participants (e.g., as related to the link between anxiety and thoughts, behaviors, health, and lifestyle)
• Structure (e.g., how instructors responded to participants’ needs and provided acceptable structures for group members to practice on their own; Abrahamsson et al., 2018)

Overall, if you are dealing with anxiety and feel that group therapy is a good fit for you, there is likely a group that will meet your needs. Once you do some research and find groups that interest you, it is also a good idea to try out several until you find the best fit.

There is a certain magic in the act of creating; young children expressing themselves through art appear not to have a care in the world.

Indeed, the therapeutic benefit in the creation of art transcends age and talent. There are two important reasons that art therapy is a viable approach for anxious individuals:

• It enables a type of self-expression that goes beyond words.
• Visual representations of anxiety aid in the application of certain types of therapy (Chambala, 2008).

Art therapy has also been described as creating a cathartic release of positive feelings (Curl, 2008). Research supports this idea, as art therapy has been found effective for the reduction of anxiety and other psychological symptoms across multiple populations.

Here are some noteworthy examples:

• Engaging in art such as coloring mandalas, making collages, and modeling with clay is associated with reduced anxiety among college students (Sandmire, Gorham, Rankin, & Grimm, 2012).
• Creating art such as ‘healthy image posters,’ greeting cards, and silk wall hangings is related to reduced anxiety among family caregivers of cancer patients (Walsh, Martin, & Schmidt, 2004).
• Participation in group art therapy is related to the reduction of symptomatology among adult psychiatric outpatients primarily diagnosed with depressive, anxiety, and adjustment disorders (Chandraiah, Anand, & Avent, 2012).
• Engaging in art therapy is related to the reduction of overall state anxiety among adult cancer patients (Nainis et al., 2006).
• Creating art is related to reduced levels of perceived stress among Canadian college students (Abbott, Shanahan, & Neufeld, 2013).
• Making pottery is related to reduced anxiety among elderly nursing home residents (Doric-Henry, 1997).
• Engaging in art-therapy-based supervision among end-of-life care workers is associated with reduced anxiety and enhancement of emotional awareness and regulation (Potash, Ho, Chan, Wang, & Cheng, 2014).
• Art therapy incorporated into brief CBT among individuals with anxiety disorders is associated with reduced frequency of panic attacks (Morris, 2014).
• Simply being exposed to visual art has been shown to reduce anxiety symptoms among psychiatric inpatients (Nanda, Eisen, Zadeh, & Owen, 2010), a finding that attests to the powerful healing power of art.

The function of music is to liberate in the soul those feelings which normally we keep locked up in the heart.

Sebastian Faulks

Music does have a way of changing moods, whether this means sinking into the angst of the blues or experiencing the upbeat feelings of disco. Because of its ability to affect mood, music therapy has been used to help patients deal with a variety of psychological problems.

Music therapy basically consists of “the monitored use of music to promote clinical change” (Bulfone, Quattrin, Zanotti, Regattin, & Brusaferro, 2009, p. 238). Music therapy can be used in multiple ways, such as in combination with CBT or other types of therapy .

Performing music may also foster positive feelings that promote healing. The efficacy of music therapy for the reduction of anxiety is also supported by scientific literature.

For example, music has been found to reduce anxiety among cancer patients receiving chemotherapy (Bulfone et al., 2009; Karagozoglu, Tekyasar, & Yilmaz, 2012), physiological signs of anxiety among patients receiving mechanical ventilatory support (Korhan, Khorshid, & Uyar, 2011), and anxiety among patients with Alzheimer’s disease (Guétin et al., 2009).

Additionally, music therapy is associated with reduced anxiety among individuals with psychiatric disorders (de l’Etoile, 2002; Bibb, Castle, & Newton, 2015; Shiranibidabadi & Mehryar, 2015).

There are many ways we can enhance our moods with the use of music; here are some ideas:

• Pick music that fits your mood or activity, such as upbeat music for exercise and classical music for relaxation.
• Try meditative music before sleeping.
• Take dance lessons.
• If you are anxious or angry while driving, pick music that will calm your nerves.
• Do not expose yourself to others’ music if it causes stress.
• Use music while creating art as a way of adding inspiration.

Similarly, there are several ways you might engage in creative art as a way of promoting positive wellbeing.

Here are a few ideas:

• Collage making
• Painting or drawing
• Building with Legos or Lincoln Logs
• Making paper airplanes
• Scrapbooking
• Stained glass making
• Sewing or quilting

As with adults, childhood anxiety disorders cause significant impairment and are often unrecognized (Walkup et al., 2008).

Rapee et al. (2009) note that childhood anxiety has a negative impact on peer relationships, school functioning, and family processes. Childhood anxiety disorders also commonly occur in conjunction with other psychological diagnoses and have been linked to inhibited temperament (Rapee et al., 2009).

The most common childhood anxiety disorders include separation anxiety, phobias, social anxiety disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and PTSD.

As with adults, childhood anxiety disorders are often successfully treated using CBT or skill-focused treatment, both of which are sometimes combined with pharmacological treatment.

In a randomized, controlled study of 488 children with anxiety disorders, CBT, both alone and in combination with antidepressant therapy, was related to significant reductions in anxiety severity as compared to a no-treatment comparison group (Walkup et al., 2008).

Similarly, among children with anxiety disorders, responsiveness to CBT during childhood has been associated with reductions in anxiety during adulthood (Benjamin, Harrison, Settipani, Brodman, & Kendall, 2013).

In a study examining the long-term effects of CBT combined with parental anxiety management, children who received the combined treatment were significantly less likely to be diagnosed with an anxiety disorder three years later (Cobham, Dadds, Spence, & McDermott, 2010).

Interestingly, the combined therapy was significantly more effective than the CBT treatment alone, which makes sense given that psychological symptoms in parents are related to treatment outcomes among children with anxiety (Berman, Weems, Silverman, & Kurtines, 2000).

Along with parental influences, the quality of peer friendships has also been found to predict better CBT treatment responses among kids with anxiety disorders (Baker & Hudson, 2013).

While there is some evidence that children with particular anxiety disorders (e.g., obsessive-compulsive disorder) may benefit from pharmacological treatment (especially selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors), quality studies examining the effects of psychotropic medication for the treatment of pediatric anxiety are scarce (Reinblatt & Riddle, 2007).

There is, however, evidence that CBT is an effective treatment for children with anxiety disorders, with long-term benefits often noted (Muris, Meesters, & van Melick, 2002). Moreover, CBT is particularly effective for treating childhood anxiety disorders when combined with family training (Muris et al., 2002).

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With the large numbers of individuals with anxiety disorders who remain undiagnosed and untreated, psychologists have attempted to find more effective ways to provide treatment.

This point is particularly salient concerning anxiety disorders, as the inability to engage in treatment outside the home is often inherent in the disorder itself.

Fortunately, technology has created an avenue in which individuals with anxiety disorders may be reached. By delivering therapist-guided CBT via the computer (

For example, in a study examining a 10-week dose of iCBT among participants with generalized anxiety, iCBT was associated with significant positive treatment effects comparable to those found for in-person treatment (Robinson et al., 2010). Similarly, CBT e-therapy has been reported as effective for the treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder, PTSD, social anxiety, and generalized anxiety (Klein, Meyer, Austin, & Kyrios, 2011).

Finally, in a comprehensive review of 26 randomized controlled studies of internet therapy, 23 studies reported positive results for the treatment of depression or anxiety symptoms (Griffiths, Farrer, & Christensen, 2010). Preliminary findings for the efficacy of internet-based treatment provides promise for adults and children experiencing the often debilitating effects of anxiety disorders.

Anxiety symptoms and clinical anxiety disorders are highly prevalent and often debilitating.

Fortunately, these conditions are absolutely treatable. Effective treatment options include CBT, attention bias modification, hypnosis, psychodynamic therapy, and vagus nerve stimulation.

The psychological treatment approach with the most scientific support for anxiety disorders is CBT. Consequently, CBT is often the treatment of choice among therapists specializing in anxiety issues.

CBT may take many forms, with exposure therapy often reported as highly successful for the reduction of anxiety. Exposure therapy may be enhanced with other therapeutic approaches, such as relaxation training and acceptance-based therapy. There is also support for the efficacy of group CBT for the treatment of anxiety, especially when groups are both cohesive and task focused.

Anxiety disorders are common among children, with the most frequent diagnoses including separation anxiety, phobias, social anxiety, generalized anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and PTSD. Research similarly indicates that CBT has long-term benefits for kids, especially when combined with family therapy . Along with CBT, art and music therapy also represent research-based approaches found to soothe an anxious mind.

In addition, there are various things individuals can do on their own to relieve anxiety, such as deep breathing, aerobic exercise, meditation, yoga, enjoying a hobby, listening to music, etc.

Finally, anxiety treatment has been dramatically advanced by technology, with e-therapy (especially iCBT) reaching larger audiences than possible with face-to-face therapy. Overall, given the preponderance of evidence supporting anxiety-focused treatment, those with anxiety disorders or symptoms have much reason to be hopeful about the promise of a tomorrow without suffering.

We hope you enjoyed reading this article. Don’t forget to download our three Positive Psychology Exercises for free .

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Hi Jill, Good question. While I’m not sure what the prevalence of iCBT services for children is (and it will depend somewhat on your country of residence), I’m aware that many face-to-face CBTs are switching to teletherapy as a result of COVID-19. So, a general suggestion I’d make is that if you have trouble finding online child CBT specialists, try doing a more general search for child CBTs and sending out some inquiries about whether they’ve moved online. Hope his helps! – Nicole | Community Manager

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Am I Experiencing Death Anxiety?

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Cognitive Behavioral Model Of Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD: Dugas, Gagnon, Ladouceur, Freeston, 1998)

Cognitive Behavioral Model Of Health Anxiety (Salkovskis, Warwick, Deale, 2003)

Cognitive Behavioral Model Of Intolerance Of Uncertainty And Generalized Anxiety Disorder Symptoms (Hebert, Dugas, 2019)

Cognitive Behavioral Model Of Panic (Clark, 1986)

Cognitive Behavioral Model Of Persistent Postural-Perceptual Dizziness (PPPD: Whalley, Cane, 2017)

Cognitive Behavioral Model Of Social Phobia (Clark, Wells, 1995)

Cognitive Distortions – Unhelpful Thinking Styles (Common)

Cognitive Distortions – Unhelpful Thinking Styles (Extended)

Combined Relaxation Exercise (Audio)

Compassionate Thought Challenging Record

Coping With Body Sensations (Psychology Tools For Overcoming Panic)

Core Belief Magnet Metaphor

Court Trial Thought Challenging Record (Archived)

Critical Care And PTSD

Decatastrophizing

Developing Psychological Flexibility

Disqualifying The Positive

Embracing Uncertainty

Emotional Reasoning

Emotions In Panic (Psychology Tools For Overcoming Panic)

Emotions Motivate Actions

Evaluating Unhelpful Automatic Thoughts

Exercise For Mental Health

Exposure Practice Form

Exposure Session Record

Exposures For Fear Of Appearing Anxious

Exposures For Fear Of Body Sensations

Exposures For Fear Of Breathlessness

Exposures For Fear Of Death

Exposures For Fear Of Flying

Exposures For Fear Of Heights

Exposures For Fear Of Illness

Exposures For Fear Of Losing Control Of Your Mind

Exposures For Fear Of Uncertainty

Exposures For Fear Of Vomiting

Externalizing

Facing Your Fears (CYP)

Facing Your Fears And Phobias

Fear Ladder

Fight or Flight (CYP)

Fight Or Flight Response

Grounding Statements (Audio)

Grounding Techniques

Grounding Techniques Menu

Habituation

Health Anxiety - Self-Monitoring Record

Health Anxiety Formulation

Health Anxiety Self-Monitoring Record (Archived)

Health Anxiety Thought Record

How Breathing Affects Feelings

How Does This All Add Up To A Panic Attack? (Psychology Tools For Overcoming Panic)

How Is Panic Disorder Different From A Panic Attack? (Psychology Tools For Overcoming Panic)

How Much Do You Know About Panic? (Psychology Tools For Overcoming Panic)

How Your Body Responds To Stress

Identifying The Meaning Of Body Sensations

Interoceptive Exposure

Interpersonal Beliefs And Styles

Intolerance Of Uncertainty

Introduction To CBT (Psychology Tools For Overcoming Panic)

Intrusive Memory Record

Jumping To Conclusions

Learning To Relax (CYP)

Living With Worry And Anxiety Amidst Global Uncertainty

Magnification And Minimization

Links to external resources.

Psychology Tools makes every effort to check external links and review their content. However, we are not responsible for the quality or content of external links and cannot guarantee that these links will work all of the time.

• Scale Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Reference Lambe, S., Bird, J. C., Loe, B. S., Rosebrock, L., Kabir, T., Petit, A., ... & Freeman, D. (2023). The Oxford agoraphobic avoidance scale. Psychological Medicine, 53(4), 1233-1243.
• Scale – Adult Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Scale – Child Age 11-17 Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Spence, S. H. (1998). A measure of anxiety symptoms among children. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 36 (5), 545-566.
• Scale website link Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Meyer, T. J., Miller, M. L., Metzger, R. L., & Borkovec, T. D. (1990). Development and validation of the penn state worry questionnaire. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 28(6), 487-495.
• Scale archive.org Download Primary Link
• Shear, M. K., Brown, T. A., Barlow, D. H., Money, R., Sholomskas, D. E., Woods, S. W., … & Papp, L. A. (1997). Multicenter collaborative panic disorder severity scale. American Journal of Psychiatry, 154(11), 1571-1575.
• Scale Download Archived Link
• Chambless, D. L., Caputo, G. C., Jasin, S. E., Gracely, E. J., & Williams, C. (1985). The mobility inventory for agoraphobia. Behaviour research and therapy, 23(1), 35-44.
• Scale Download Primary Link
• Reference Salkovskis, P. M., Rimes, K. A., Warwick, H. M. C., & Clark, D. M. (2002). The Health Anxiety Inventory: development and validation of scales for the measurement of health anxiety and hypochondriasis. Psychological Medicine, 32(05), 843-853.
• Hamilton, M. (1959).The assessment of anxiety states by rating. British Journal of Medical Psychology 32, 50-55.
• Spitzer RL, Kroenke K, Williams JBW, Lowe B. A brief measure for assessing generalized anxiety disorder. Arch Inern Med. 2006;166:1092-1097.
• Marks, I. M., & Mathews, A. M. (1979). Brief standard self-rating for phobic patients. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 17(3), 263-267.
• Brief Fear Of Negative Evaluation Scale | Leary | 1983 Download Primary Link Archived Link

Guides and workbooks

• Specific phobia: patient treatment manual | Clinical Research Unit for Anxiety and Depression (CRUfAD) Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Working To Overcome Anxiety (Workbook) | Lucock, Noble, Pallister, Horsefield, Padgett, Westley, Atha, Khan | 2015 Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Anxiety And Substance Use | NDARC: Mills, Marel, Baker, Teesson, Dore, Kay-Lambkin, Manns, Triningham | 2011 Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Social Anxiety (An NHS Self-Help Guide) | Lesley Maunder, Lorna Cameron | 2020 Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Phobia Self-Help Booklet | Anne Joice, Jim White | 2006 Download Archived Link
• Panic attacks: what they are and how to stop the next one | Glasgow STEPS Download Archived Link
• Coping with panic | Charles Young, Alison Hunte, Jessica Newell, Pat Valian | 2011 Download Archived Link
• Health Anxiety – A Self-Help Guide | Maunder, Cameron, Young, Leyland | 2015 Download Archived Link

Information Handouts

• What Is Panic? Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Biology and Psychology of Panic Download Primary Link Archived Link
• The Vicious Cycle of Anxiety Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Breathing Retraining Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Behavioural Experiments (Negative Predictions) Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Situational Exposure Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Physical Sensations and Panic Download Primary Link Archived Link
• What Are Safety Behaviours? Download Primary Link Archived Link
• What is health anxiety? Download Primary Link
• What are safety behaviors? Download Primary Link
• Dealing with health information Download Primary Link
• What is social anxiety? Download Primary Link
• What can be done about social anxiety? Download Primary Link
• Breathing retraining Download Primary Link
• Progressive muscle relaxation Download Primary Link
• Improving how you feel Download Primary Link
• Thinking and feeling Download Primary Link
• Analysing your thinking Download Primary Link
• Changing your thinking Download Primary Link
• Unhelpful thinking styles Download Primary Link
• What are core beliefs? Download Primary Link
• Situational exposure Download Primary Link
• Staying healthy Download Primary Link
• What is anxiety? Download Primary Link
• The vicious cycle of anxiety Download Primary Link
• Behavioral experiments Download Primary Link
• What are safety behaviours? Download Primary Link
• Stress and anxiety Download Primary Link
• Coping with stress Download Primary Link
• Anxiety and exercise Download Primary Link
• What is needle phobia? Download Primary Link
• Overcoming needle phobia Download Primary Link
• CBT for anxiety Download Primary Link

Information (Professional)

• Task Concentration Training Definition | Bögels Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Interoceptive Exposure Definition | White, Basden, Barlow Download Archived Link
• Assertive defense of the self (A more effective treatment focus for social phobia?) | Padesky | 1985 Download Primary Link Archived Link

Presentations

• Why worry? Key cognitive processes that maintain worry and Generalised Anxiety Disorder | Colette Hirsch Download Primary Link Archived Link
• New developments in exposure therapy for anxiety and related disorders: the inhibitory learning approach | Blakey, Abramowitz | 2018 Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Bringing Specificity to Generalized Anxiety Disorder: Conceptualization and Treatment of GAD using Intolerance of Uncertainty as the Theme of Threat | Robichaud | 2013 Download Primary Link Archived Link
• GAD – a cognitive model and treatment Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Desirable difficulties: optimizing exposure therapy for anxiety through inhibitory learning | Abramowitz, Jacoby, Blakey | 2018 Download Primary Link Archived Link

Self-Help Programmes

• Module 1: Overview Of Generalized Anxiety Download Primary Link
• Module 2: Overview Of Worrying Download Primary Link
• Module 3: Challenging Uncontrollability Beliefs Download Primary Link
• Module 4: Attention Training Download Primary Link
• Module 5: Challenging Danger Beliefs Download Primary Link
• Module 6: Challenging Positive Beliefs Download Primary Link
• Module 7: Problem-Solving Download Primary Link
• Module 8: Helpful Thinking Download Primary Link
• Module 9: Accepting Uncertainty Download Primary Link
• Module 10: Self Management Plan Download Primary Link
• Module 1: Understanding Social Anxiety Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Module 2: Overcoming Negative Thinking Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Module 3: Overcoming Avoidance Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Module 4: Behavioral Experiment Stepladders Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Module 5: Safety Behaviors Download Primary Link
• Module 6: The Role Of Attention Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Module 7: How I Think I Appear To Others Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Module 8: Challenging Core Beliefs Download Primary Link
• Module 9: Strengthening New Core Beliefs Download Primary Link
• Module 10: Maintaining Your Gains And Dealing With Setbacks Download Primary Link
• Module 1: Overview Of Panic Download Primary Link
• Module 2: What Keeps Panic Disorder Going Download Primary Link
• Module 3: Overcoming Thoughts About Panic Download Primary Link
• Module 4: Coping With Physical Alarms Download Primary Link
• Module 5: Facing Feared Situations Download Primary Link
• Module 6: Dropping Safety Behaviors Download Primary Link
• Module 7: Maintaining Your Gains Download Primary Link

Treatment Guide

• Cognitive behavioral therapy for anxiety: an application of the F.E.A.R. model for adults | Stephen Lenz Download Primary Link Archived Link
• The CARS cognitive behavioral treatment for anxiety manual | Center for Adolescent Research in Schools | 2014 Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Comprehensive cognitive behavior therapy for social phobia: a treatment manual | Deborah Roth Ledley, Edna B. Foa, Jonathan D. Huppert (in consultation with David M. Clark) | 2005 Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Canadian clinical practice guidelines for the management of anxiety, posttraumatic stress and obsessive-compulsive disorders (2014) | Katzman et al | 2014 Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Panic disorder: Manual for Improving Access to Psychological Therapy (IAPT) High intensity CBT therapists. | David Clark, Paul Salkovskis | 2009 Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Comprehensive cognitive behavior therapy for social phobia: a treatment manual | Ledley, Foa, Huppert, Clark | 2006 Download Primary Link
• NICE Guidelines For Social Anxiety Disorder | NICE | 2013 Download Primary Link
• NICE Guidelines For GAD And Panic | NICE | 2011 Download Primary Link
• A brief cognitive-behavioural treatment for social anxiety disorder | Eric P. Morris, David Mensink, and Sherry H. Stewart Download Archived Link
• Breathing Rate Record Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Anxiety Symptoms Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Monitoring Relaxation Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Situational Exposure Diary Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Internal Exposure Record Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Anxiety symptoms record Download Primary Link
• Breathing rate record Download Primary Link
• Monitoring your relaxation level Download Primary Link
• Weekly activity schedule Download Primary Link
• Weekly goals record Download Primary Link
• Making the connection Download Primary Link
• Thought diary 1 Download Primary Link
• Thought diary 2 Download Primary Link
• Thought diary 3 Download Primary Link
• Thought diary (tri-fold) Download Primary Link
• Core beliefs worksheet Download Primary Link
• Situational exposure: building steps Download Primary Link
• Healthy me Download Primary Link
• Goal setting: end of therapy Download Primary Link
• Anxiety Symptoms Record Download Primary Link
• Breathing Rate Record Download Primary Link
• Monitoring Relaxation Download Primary Link
• Situational Exposure Diary Download Primary Link
• Making The Connection Download Primary Link
• Thought Diary 1 Download Primary Link
• Thought Diary 2 Download Primary Link
• Thought Diary 3 Download Primary Link
• Thought Diary (Tri-Fold) Download Primary Link
• Behavioral Experiment Worksheet Download Primary Link

Recommended Reading

Health anxiety.

• Salkovskis, P. M., Warwick, H. M. C., Deale, A. C. (2003). Cognitive-Behavioral Treatment for Severe and Persistent Health Anxiety (Hypochondriasis). Brief Treatment and Crisis Intervention, 3, 353-367 btci.edina.clockss.org Download Archived Link

Social Anxiety Disorder

• Warnock-Parkes, E., Wild, J., Stott, R., Grey, N., Ehlers, A., & Clark, D. M. (2017). Seeing is believing: Using video feedback in cognitive therapy for social anxiety disorder. Cognitive and behavioral practice, 24(2), 245-255. view Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Veale, D. (2003). Treatment of social phobia. Advances in Psychiatric Treatment, 9, 258-264 Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Wild, Hackmann, Clark (2008). Rescripting early memories linked to negative images in social phobia: a pilot study. Behaviour Therapy, 39(1), 47-56. Download Primary Link
• Moscovitch, D. A. (2009). What is the core fear in social phobia? A new model to facilitate individualized case conceptualization and treatment. Cognitive and Behavioural Practice, 16. 123-134 Download Archived Link
• Clark, D. M. (2001). A cognitive perspective on social phobia Download Archived Link

Panic disorder

• Wells, A. (1997). Cognitive Therapy of Anxiety Disorders. Chichester: Wiley.
• Schmidt, N. B., Woolaway-Bickel, K., Trakowski, J. et al. (2000). Dismantling cognitive-behavioural treatment for panic disorder: Questioning the utility of breathing retraining. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 68(3), 417-424 Download Archived Link
• Huppert, J. D., & Baker-Morissette, S. L. (2003). Beyond the manual: The insider’s guide to panic control treatment.Cognitive and Behavioral Practice,10(1), 2-13.
• Clark, D. A. (1999). Anxiety disorders: Why they persist and how to treat them. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 37, S5-S27 Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Walker, J. R., Furer, P. (2008). Interoceptive exposure in the treatment of health anxiety and hypochondirasis. Journal of Cognitive Psychotherapy, 22(4), 366-378 Download Primary Link
• Warnock-Parkes, E., Wild, J., Thew, G., Kerr, A., Grey, N., & Clark, D. (2022). ‘I’m unlikeable, boring, weird, foolish, inferior, inadequate’: How to address the persistent negative self-evaluations that are central to social anxiety disorder with cognitive therapy. The Cognitive Behaviour Therapist, 15, E56. doi:10.1017/S1754470X22000496 view Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Furer, P., Walker, J. R. (2008). Death anxiety: A cognitive behavioural approach. Journal of Cognitive Psychotherapy, 22(2), 167-182 Download Primary Link
• Asmundson, G. J. G., Abramowitz, J. S., Richter, A. A., Whedon, M. (2010). Health anxiety: current perspectives and future directions. Current Psychiatry Reports, 12, 306-312 Download Primary Link

Generalized Anxiety Disorder

• Roemer, L., Salters, K., Raffa, S. D., & Orsillo, S. M. (2005). Fear and avoidance of internal experiences in GAD: Preliminary tests of a conceptual model.Cognitive Therapy and Research,29(1), 71-88.
• Roemer, L., & Orsillo, S. M. (2002). Expanding our conceptualization of and treatment for generalized anxiety disorder: Integrating mindfulness/acceptance‐based approaches with existing cognitive‐behavioral models.Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice,9(1), 54-68 Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Mennin, D. S., Heimberg, R. G., Turk, C. L., & Fresco, D. M. (2002). Applying an emotion regulation framework to integrative approaches to generalized anxiety disorder.Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice,9(1), 85-90 Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Fresco, D. M., Mennin, D. S., Heimberg, R. G., & Ritter, M. (2013). Emotion regulation therapy for generalized anxiety disorder.Cognitive and Behavioral Practice,20(3), 282-300 nih.gov Download Primary Link
• Wells, A. (1995). Meta-cognition and worry: A cognitive model of generalized anxiety disorder.Behavioural and cognitive psychotherapy,23(3), 301-320 Download Archived Link
• Hjemdal, O., Hagen, R., Nordahl, H. M., & Wells, A. (2013). Metacognitive therapy for generalized anxiety disorder: Nature, evidence and an individual case illustration.Cognitive and Behavioral Practice,20(3), 301-313.
• Hjemdal, O., Hagen, R., Nordahl, H. M., & Wells, A. (2013). Metacognitive therapy for generalized anxiety disorder: Nature, evidence and an individual case illustration.Cognitive and Behavioral Practice,20(3), 301-313 Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Borkovec, T. D., Alcaine, O., & Behar, E. (2004). Avoidance theory of worry and generalized anxiety disorder.Generalized anxiety disorder: Advances in research and practice,2004.
• Dugas, M. J., Gagnon, F., Ladouceur, R., & Freeston, M. H. (1998). Generalized anxiety disorder: A preliminary test of a conceptual model.Behaviour research and therapy,36(2), 215-226.
• Milne, S., Lomax, C., & Freeston, M. H. (2019). A review of the relationship between intolerance of uncertainty and threat appraisal in anxiety. the Cognitive Behaviour Therapist, 12. Download Primary Link
• Hirsch, C. R., Beale, S., Grey, N., & Liness, S. (2019). Approaching cognitive behavior therapy for generalized anxiety disorder from a cognitive process perspective. Frontiers in psychiatry, 10, 796. Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Bottesi, G., Ghisi, M., Carraro, E., Barclay, N., Payne, R., & Freeston, M. H. (2016). Revising the Intolerance of Uncertainty Model of Generalized Anxiety Disorder: Evidence from UK and Italian Undergraduate Samples.Frontiers in psychology,7, 1723 Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Behar, E., DiMarco, I. D., Hekler, E. B., Mohlman, J., Staples, A. M. (2009). Current theoretical models of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD): Conceptual review and treatment implications. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 23, 1011-1023 Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Clark, D. M. (1999). Anxiety disorders: why they persist and how to treat them. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 37, S5-S27 Download Primary Link Archived Link
• Task concentration training and fear of blushing | Bögels, Mulkens, De Jong | 1997 Download Archived Link

What Is Anxiety?

Signs and symptoms of anxiety disorders.

Different anxiety disorders are characterized by various foci of concern.

• Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is characterized by excessive worry about hypothetical future events .
• Health anxiety is characterized by concern about one’s health or illness.
• Panic attacks are characterized by an abrupt surge or intense fear .
• Specific phobia is characterized by the ability for a specific object or situation to provoke marked fear or anxiety .
• Social anxiety disorder is characterized by a fear of social situations in which the individual may be exposed to possible scrutiny .

In addition to disorder-specific cognitive content, individuals experiencing anxiety disorders are likely to experience physical symptoms of anxiety including:

• palpitations or accelerated heart rate
• trembling or shaking
• difficulty breathing
• a feeling of choking
• nausea or abdominal discomfort
• derealization or depersonalization
• fear of losing control or passing out
• fear of dying
• hot flushes or cold chills
• numbness or tingling
• fear of vomiting
• urgency or fear of urination or defecation

Psychological Models and Theories of Anxiety

One broad conceptualization of anxiety can be summarized by an ‘anxiety equation’ (Beck, Emery, & Greenberg, 1985; Salkovskis, Forrester, & Richards, 1998):

Anxiety = (perceived probability of therapy × perceived cost or awfulness of danger) ÷ (perceived ability to cope + perceived ‘rescue factors’)

Disorder-specific ‘CBT for anxiety’ cognitive models  have been developed for all of the anxiety disorders. These are helpful in that they direct the therapist’s attention toward key interpretations and behaviors that act to perpetuate the anxiety disorders . For example, the critical mechanism that Clark identified in the cognitive model of panic (1986) is that body sensations are misinterpreted catastrophically as signs of danger , with concomitant effects upon emotions, behavior, and secondary cognitions.

Evidence-Based Psychological Approaches for Working with Anxiety

Cognitive behavior therapy has a strong evidence base for treating all of the anxiety disorders. Key components of CBT for anxiety interventions include exposure to the feared situations or stimulus, and an experimental approach to test the accuracy of beliefs .

Resources for Working with Anxiety

Psychology Tools resources available for working therapeutically with anxiety may include:

• psychological models of anxiety
• information handouts for anxious patients
• exercises for anxiety
• CBT worksheets for anxiety
• self-help programs for anxiety including a guide to overcoming panic attacks and panic disorder
• Beck, A. T., Emery, G., & Greenberg, R. L. (1985). Anxiety disorders and phobias: A cognitive perspective . New York: Basic Books.
• Clark, D. M. (1986). A cognitive approach to panic. Behaviour  Research and Therapy , 24 (4), 461–470.
• Salkovskis, P. M., Forrester, E., & Richards, C. (1998). Cognitive–behavioral approach to understanding obsessional thinking. The British Journal of Psychiatry , 173 (S35), 53–63.
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Stanford research shows pitfalls of homework

A Stanford researcher found that students in high-achieving communities who spend too much time on homework experience more stress, physical health problems, a lack of balance and even alienation from society. More than two hours of homework a night may be counterproductive, according to the study.

Education scholar Denise Pope has found that too much homework has negative effects on student well-being and behavioral engagement. (Image credit: L.A. Cicero)

A Stanford researcher found that too much homework can negatively affect kids, especially their lives away from school, where family, friends and activities matter.

“Our findings on the effects of homework challenge the traditional assumption that homework is inherently good,” wrote Denise Pope , a senior lecturer at the Stanford Graduate School of Education and a co-author of a study published in the Journal of Experimental Education .

The researchers used survey data to examine perceptions about homework, student well-being and behavioral engagement in a sample of 4,317 students from 10 high-performing high schools in upper-middle-class California communities. Along with the survey data, Pope and her colleagues used open-ended answers to explore the students’ views on homework.

Median household income exceeded $90,000 in these communities, and 93 percent of the students went on to college, either two-year or four-year.

Students in these schools average about 3.1 hours of homework each night.

“The findings address how current homework practices in privileged, high-performing schools sustain students’ advantage in competitive climates yet hinder learning, full engagement and well-being,” Pope wrote.

Pope and her colleagues found that too much homework can diminish its effectiveness and even be counterproductive. They cite prior research indicating that homework benefits plateau at about two hours per night, and that 90 minutes to two and a half hours is optimal for high school.

Their study found that too much homework is associated with:

• Greater stress: 56 percent of the students considered homework a primary source of stress, according to the survey data. Forty-three percent viewed tests as a primary stressor, while 33 percent put the pressure to get good grades in that category. Less than 1 percent of the students said homework was not a stressor.

• Reductions in health: In their open-ended answers, many students said their homework load led to sleep deprivation and other health problems. The researchers asked students whether they experienced health issues such as headaches, exhaustion, sleep deprivation, weight loss and stomach problems.

• Less time for friends, family and extracurricular pursuits: Both the survey data and student responses indicate that spending too much time on homework meant that students were “not meeting their developmental needs or cultivating other critical life skills,” according to the researchers. Students were more likely to drop activities, not see friends or family, and not pursue hobbies they enjoy.

A balancing act

The results offer empirical evidence that many students struggle to find balance between homework, extracurricular activities and social time, the researchers said. Many students felt forced or obligated to choose homework over developing other talents or skills.

Also, there was no relationship between the time spent on homework and how much the student enjoyed it. The research quoted students as saying they often do homework they see as “pointless” or “mindless” in order to keep their grades up.

“This kind of busy work, by its very nature, discourages learning and instead promotes doing homework simply to get points,” Pope said.

She said the research calls into question the value of assigning large amounts of homework in high-performing schools. Homework should not be simply assigned as a routine practice, she said.

“Rather, any homework assigned should have a purpose and benefit, and it should be designed to cultivate learning and development,” wrote Pope.

High-performing paradox

In places where students attend high-performing schools, too much homework can reduce their time to foster skills in the area of personal responsibility, the researchers concluded. “Young people are spending more time alone,” they wrote, “which means less time for family and fewer opportunities to engage in their communities.”

Student perspectives

The researchers say that while their open-ended or “self-reporting” methodology to gauge student concerns about homework may have limitations – some might regard it as an opportunity for “typical adolescent complaining” – it was important to learn firsthand what the students believe.

The paper was co-authored by Mollie Galloway from Lewis and Clark College and Jerusha Conner from Villanova University.

Is it time to get rid of homework? Mental health experts weigh in.

It's no secret that kids hate homework. And as students grapple with an ongoing pandemic that has had a wide range of mental health impacts, is it time schools start listening to their pleas about workloads?

Some teachers are turning to social media to take a stand against homework. 

Tiktok user @misguided.teacher says he doesn't assign it because the "whole premise of homework is flawed."

For starters, he says, he can't grade work on "even playing fields" when students' home environments can be vastly different.

"Even students who go home to a peaceful house, do they really want to spend their time on busy work? Because typically that's what a lot of homework is, it's busy work," he says in the video that has garnered 1.6 million likes. "You only get one year to be 7, you only got one year to be 10, you only get one year to be 16, 18."

Mental health experts agree heavy workloads have the potential do more harm than good for students, especially when taking into account the impacts of the pandemic. But they also say the answer may not be to eliminate homework altogether.

Emmy Kang, mental health counselor at Humantold , says studies have shown heavy workloads can be "detrimental" for students and cause a "big impact on their mental, physical and emotional health."

"More than half of students say that homework is their primary source of stress, and we know what stress can do on our bodies," she says, adding that staying up late to finish assignments also leads to disrupted sleep and exhaustion.

Cynthia Catchings, a licensed clinical social worker and therapist at Talkspace , says heavy workloads can also cause serious mental health problems in the long run, like anxiety and depression. 

And for all the distress homework  can cause, it's not as useful as many may think, says Dr. Nicholas Kardaras, a psychologist and CEO of Omega Recovery treatment center.

"The research shows that there's really limited benefit of homework for elementary age students, that really the school work should be contained in the classroom," he says.

For older students, Kang says, homework benefits plateau at about two hours per night. 

"Most students, especially at these high achieving schools, they're doing a minimum of three hours, and it's taking away time from their friends, from their families, their extracurricular activities. And these are all very important things for a person's mental and emotional health."

Catchings, who also taught third to 12th graders for 12 years, says she's seen the positive effects of a no-homework policy while working with students abroad.

"Not having homework was something that I always admired from the French students (and) the French schools, because that was helping the students to really have the time off and really disconnect from school," she says.

The answer may not be to eliminate homework completely but to be more mindful of the type of work students take home, suggests Kang, who was a high school teacher for 10 years.

"I don't think (we) should scrap homework; I think we should scrap meaningless, purposeless busy work-type homework. That's something that needs to be scrapped entirely," she says, encouraging teachers to be thoughtful and consider the amount of time it would take for students to complete assignments.

The pandemic made the conversation around homework more crucial 

Mindfulness surrounding homework is especially important in the context of the past two years. Many students will be struggling with mental health issues that were brought on or worsened by the pandemic , making heavy workloads even harder to balance.

"COVID was just a disaster in terms of the lack of structure. Everything just deteriorated," Kardaras says, pointing to an increase in cognitive issues and decrease in attention spans among students. "School acts as an anchor for a lot of children, as a stabilizing force, and that disappeared."

But even if students transition back to the structure of in-person classes, Kardaras suspects students may still struggle after two school years of shifted schedules and disrupted sleeping habits.

"We've seen adults struggling to go back to in-person work environments from remote work environments. That effect is amplified with children because children have less resources to be able to cope with those transitions than adults do," he explains.

'Get organized' ahead of back-to-school

In order to make the transition back to in-person school easier, Kang encourages students to "get good sleep, exercise regularly (and) eat a healthy diet."

To help manage workloads, she suggests students "get organized."

"There's so much mental clutter up there when you're disorganized. ... Sitting down and planning out their study schedules can really help manage their time," she says.

Breaking up assignments can also make things easier to tackle.

"I know that heavy workloads can be stressful, but if you sit down and you break down that studying into smaller chunks, they're much more manageable."

If workloads are still too much, Kang encourages students to advocate for themselves.

"They should tell their teachers when a homework assignment just took too much time or if it was too difficult for them to do on their own," she says. "It's good to speak up and ask those questions. Respectfully, of course, because these are your teachers. But still, I think sometimes teachers themselves need this feedback from their students."

More: Some teachers let their students sleep in class. Here's what mental health experts say.

More: Some parents are slipping young kids in for the COVID-19 vaccine, but doctors discourage the move as 'risky'

The Truth About Homework Stress: What Parents & Students Need to Know

• Fact Checked

Written by:

published on:

• December 21, 2023

Updated on:

• January 9, 2024

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Homework is generally given out to ensure that students take time to review and remember the days lessons. It can help improve on a student’s general performance and enhance traits like self-discipline and independent problem solving.

Parents are able to see what their children are doing in school, while also helping teachers determine how well the lesson material is being learned. Homework is quite beneficial when used the right way and can improve student  performance.

This well intentioned practice can turn sour if it’s not handled the right way. Studies show that if a student is inundated with too much homework, not only do they get lower scores, but they are more likely to get stressed.

The age at which homework stress is affecting students is getting lower, some even as low as kindergarten. Makes you wonder what could a five year old possibly need to review as homework?

One of the speculated reasons for this stress is that the complexity of what a student is expected to learn is increasing, while the breaks for working out excess energy are reduced. Students are getting significantly more homework than recommended by the education leaders, some even nearly three times more.

To make matters worse, teachers may give homework that is both time consuming and will keep students busy while being totally non-productive.

Remedial work like telling students to copy notes word for word from their text books will  do nothing to improve their grades or help them progress. It just adds unnecessary stress.

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Effects of homework stress at home

Both parents and students tend to get stressed out at the beginning of a new school year due to the impending arrival of homework.

Nightly battles centered on finishing assignments are a household routine in houses with students.

Research has found that too much homework can negatively affect children. In creating a lack of balance between play time and time spent doing homework, a child can get headaches, sleep deprivation or even ulcers.

And homework stress doesn’t just impact grade schoolers. College students are also affected, and the stress is affecting their academic performance.

Even the parent’s confidence in their abilities to help their children with homework suffers due increasing stress levels in the household.

Fights and conflict over homework are more likely in families where parents do not have at least a college degree. When the child needs assistance, they have to turn to their older siblings who might already be bombarded with their own homework.

Parents who have a college degree feel more confident in approaching the school and discussing the appropriate amount of school work.

“It seems that homework being assigned discriminates against parents who don’t have college degree, parents who have English as their second language and against parents who are poor.” Said Stephanie Donaldson Pressman, the contributing editor of the study and clinical director of the New England Center for Pediatric Psychology.

With all the stress associated with homework, it’s not surprising that some parents have opted not to let their children do homework. Parents that have instituted a no-homework policy have stated that it has taken a lot of the stress out of their evenings.

The recommended amount homework

The standard endorsed by the National Education Association is called the “10 minute rule”; 10 minutes per grade level per night. This recommendation was made after a number of studies were done on the effects of too much homework on families.

The 10 minute rule basically means 10 minutes of homework in the first grade, 20 minute for the second grade all the way up to 120 minutes for senior year in high school. Note that no homework is endorsed in classes under the first grade.

Parents reported first graders were spending around half an hour on homework each night, and kindergarteners spent 25 minutes a night on assignments according to a study carried out by Brown University.

Making a five year old sit still for half an hour is very difficult as they are at the age where they just want to move around and play.

A child who is exposed to 4-5 hours of homework after school is less likely to find the time to go out and play with their friends, which leads to accumulation of stress energy in the body.

Their social life also suffers because between the time spent at school and doing homework, a child will hardly have the time to pursue hobbies. They may also develop a negative attitude towards learning.

The research highlighted that 56% of students consider homework a primary source of stress.

And if you’re curious how the U.S stacks up against other countries in regards to how much time children spend on homework, it’s pretty high on the list .

Signs to look out for on a student that has homework stress

Since not every student is affected by homework stress in the same way, it’s important to be aware of some of the signs your child might be mentally drained from too much homework.

Here are some common signs of homework stress:

• Sleep disturbances
• Frequent stomachaches and headaches
• Decreased appetite or changed eating habits
• New or recurring fears
• Not able to relax
• Regressing to behavior they had when younger
• Bursts of anger crying or whining
• Becoming withdrawn while others may become clingy
• Drastic changes in academic performance
• Having trouble concentrating or completing homework
• Constantly complains about their ability to do homework

If you’re a parent and notice any of these signs in your child, step in to find out what’s going on and if homework is the source of their stress.

If you’re a student, pay attention if you start experiencing any of these symptoms as a result of your homework load. Don’t be afraid to ask your teacher or parents for help if the stress of homework becomes too much for you.

What parents do wrong when it comes to homework stress

Most parents push their children to do more and be more, without considering the damage being done by this kind of pressure.

Some think that homework brought home is always something the children can deal with on their own. If the child cannot handle their homework then these parents get angry and make the child feel stupid.

This may lead to more arguing and increased dislike of homework in the household. Ultimately the child develops an even worse attitude towards homework.

Another common mistake parents make is never questioning the amount of homework their children get, or how much time they spend on it. It’s easy to just assume whatever the teacher assigned is adequate, but as we mentioned earlier, that’s not always the case.

Be proactive and involved with your child’s homework. If you notice they’re spending hours every night on homework, ask them about it. Just because they don’t complain doesn’t mean there isn’t a problem.

How can parents help?

• While every parent wants their child to become successful and achieve the very best, it’s important to pull back on the mounting pressure and remember that they’re still just kids. They need time out to release their stress and connect with other children.
• Many children may be afraid to admit that they’re overwhelmed by homework because they might be misconstrued as failures. The best thing a parent can do is make home a safe place for children to express themselves freely. You can do this by lending a listening ear and not judging your kids.
• Parents can also take the initiative to let the school know that they’re unhappy with the amount of homework being given. Even if you don’t feel comfortable complaining, you can approach the school through the parent-teacher association available and request your representative to plead your case.
• It may not be all the subjects that are causing your child to get stressed. Parents should find out if there is a specific subject of homework that is causing stress. You could also consult with other parents to see what they can do to fix the situation. It may be the amount or the content that causes stress, so the first step is identifying the problem.
• Work with your child to create a schedule for getting homework done on time. You can set a specific period of time for homework, and schedule time for other activities too. Strike a balance between work and play.
• Understanding that your child is stressed about homework doesn’t mean you have to allow them not to try. Let them sit down and work on it as much as they’re able to, and recruit help from the older siblings or a neighbor if possible.
• Check out these resources to help your child with their homework .

The main idea here is to not abolish homework completely, but to review the amount and quality of homework being given out. Stress, depression and lower grades are the last things parents want for their children.

The schools and parents need to work together to find a solution to this obvious problem.

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End Homework Anxiety: Stress-Busting Techniques for Your Child

Sometimes kids dread homework because they'd rather be outside playing when they're not at school. But, sometimes a child's resistance to homework is more intense than a typical desire to be having fun, and it can be actually be labeled as homework anxiety: a legitimate condition suffered by some students who feel intense feelings of fear and dread when it comes to doing homework. Read on to learn about what homework anxiety is and whether your child may be suffering from it.

What is Homework Anxiety?

Homework anxiety is a condition in which students stress about and fear homework, often causing them to put homework off until later . It is a self-exacerbating condition because the longer the student puts off the homework, the more anxiety they feel about it, and the more pressure they experience to finish the work with less time. Homework anxiety can cripple some kids who are perfectly capable of doing the work, causing unfinished assignments and grades that slip.

What Causes Homework Anxiety?

There are many causes of homework anxiety, and there can be multiple factors spurring feelings of fear and stress. Some common causes of homework anxiety include:

• Other anxiety issues: Students who tend to suffer anxiety and worry, in general, can begin to associate anxiety with their homework, as well.
• Fear of testing: Often, homework is associated with upcoming tests and quizzes, which affect grades. Students can feel pressure related to being "graded" and avoid homework since it feels weighty and important.
• General school struggle: When students are struggling in school or with grades, they may feel a sense of anxiety about learning and school in general.
• Lack of support: Without a parent, sibling, tutor, or other help at home, students may feel that they won't have the necessary support to complete an assignment.
• Perfectionism: Students who want to perform perfectly in school may get anxious about completing a homework assignment perfectly and, in turn, procrastinate.

Basic Tips for Helping with Homework Anxiety

To help your child with homework anxiety, there are a few basic tips to try. Set time limits for homework, so that students know there is a certain time of the day when they must start and finish assignments. This helps them avoid putting off homework until it feels too rushed and pressured. Make sure your student has support available when doing their work, so they know they'll be able to ask for help if needed. Teaching your child general tips to deal with anxiety can also help, like deep breathing, getting out to take a short walk, or quieting racing thoughts in their mind to help them focus.

How can the Brain Balance Program Help with Homework Anxiety?

Extensive scientific research demonstrates that the brain is malleable, allowing for brain connectivity change and development and creating an opportunity for improvement at any age. Brain Balance has applied this research to develop a program that focuses on building brain connectivity and improving the foundation of development, rather than masking or coping with symptoms.

If you have a child or a teenager who struggles with homework anxiety, an assessment can help to identify key areas for improvement and create an action plan for you and your child. To get started, take our quick, free online assessment by clicking the link below. 

Get started with a plan for your child today.

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Top 10 Practical CBT Exercises For Anxiety Relief (+FREE Worksheets PDF)

Today, you’re going to learn all about living with generalized anxiety disorder and how to use Cognitive Behavioral Therapy CBT exercises for anxiety relief.

Generalized anxiety disorder (or GAD) is characterized by  excessive, exaggerated anxiety and worry about almost everything for no particular reason .

People with symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder tend to engage in unhelpful thinking styles , such as catastrophizing and always expecting the worst.

This is where CBT comes into play.

The guiding principle behind Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is that our thoughts determine our feelings and behaviors. By gaining better control over your thoughts, you’ll be able to change your feelings and behavior.

What Is Anxiety?

Functional vs. dysfunctional anxiety, generalized anxiety disorder relief: cognitive-behavioral therapy cbt, free cbt worksheets for anxiety pdf, top 10 practical cbt exercises for anxiety relief, before you start, 1. regulating your automatic nervous system, 2. reframing your negative thoughts, 3. gradual exposure, bonus tip. natural remedies for generalized anxiety disorder.

Anxiety is the feeling of uneasiness a person feels about a certain person, place, object or situation. It can be experienced in the form of fear or worry.

It’s a common feeling everyone experiences at a certain point in his life. However, some people develop certain kinds of anxiety disorders that cause negative feelings, and extreme and irrational behavioral responses.

Related: Anxiety Free Resources

There are six major forms of anxiety disorders:

• Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)
• Social Anxiety
• Specific phobias
• Panic Disorder
• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Each of these forms of anxiety is triggered and addressed differently. ( * )

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is the preferred psychosocial intervention for most of them.

Related: Anxiety Relief: How to Treat Anxious Symptoms and Thoughts Effectively?

Anxiety is a normal human emotion.

There are many times when it is perfectly natural that we feel anxious, such as giving a presentation at work, learning how to drive a car, talking to someone we’re attracted to, etc.

This kind of anxiety isn’t just normal, it’s also functional. Feeling anxious as the exams draw close can motivate you to study harder.

The question here is and when does anxiety stop serving its purpose and become a disorder?

Function anxiety is generally connected to a specific situation. For example, you may feel anxious about an upcoming exam, but once it’s over, the anxiety dissipates.

Dysfunctional anxiety, on the other hand:

* Is not connected to a specific trigger or situation

* Is not time limited.

* Can be much more intense than a typical anxiety response, and may even lead to a panic attack.

* Is interfering with your life in some way (e.g. your ability to perform at work, your ability to engage in social activities, etc.)

Living With Generalized Anxiety Disorder: What’s Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)?

Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is one of the most common anxiety disorders.

The individual who has GAD, usually, sufferers from excessive worry about almost everything for no particular reason or cause – be it their health, family, friends, professional life, financial status. ( * )

How Do You Know You Have Generalized Anxiety Disorder?

Some of the most common symptoms of GAD include:

• Excessive worry or tension,
• Restlessness,
• Sleeping difficulties,
• Mood swings,
• Concentrating difficulties, and

How Generalized Anxiety Disorder Affects Life?

People who suffer from GAD are constantly worried that something bad will happen, they see things from a negative point of view, and they expect the worst case scenario about almost everything.

This makes it difficult for someone to lead a happy and fulfilling life.

Anxiety medication for generalized anxiety disorder is not the only option.

CBT is one of the most popular kinds of therapy available to us right now. This is mostly due to its easy application and simple techniques.

It targets our negative ways of thinking which are distorting our attitudes towards ourselves and the world around us, and corrects them to help us become emotionally and mentally balanced.

Even though it won’t rid you of depression or cure your mental illness completely and permanently, it can do a lot to make it more manageable and improve your overall life quality. ( * )

1. Embrace change and the discomfort that comes with it

CBT is about creating positive change in your life through reframing your mindset. Sometimes change can be hard, uncomfortable and even painful but it’s a crucial part of healing. Trust in the process and keep in mind that sometimes, things get worse before they get better.

2. Set a deadline for yourself

Setting deadlines for your goals makes you more committed to getting better through CBT.

3. Allow yourself to be emotionally vulnerable

It can be scary to admit that you have a problem or even think about it. But unless you allow yourself to be emotionally vulnerable and completely honest, CBT won’t offer you much.

Take the time to ponder on what your problems are which of your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are dysfunctional.

Yoga help individuals who have GAD relieve their muscle tension.

Studies show that yoga helps lower a person’s stress and relax their muscles. Sign up for a yoga class or do it at home.

If you choose to do it at home, do it in the afternoon or at the end of the day to help you decompress. Play some relaxing music and breathe deeply. Choose which poses you want to perform and take your time through all the movements.

Most importantly, keep your mind clear and enjoy yourself.

#2. Breathing exercises

Breathing exercises is a good practice when you start to feel yourself getting anxious.

• Breathe as deep down into your belly as is comfortable.
• Breathing in through your nose and out through your mouth.
• Some people find it helpful to count steadily from 1 to 5.
• Then, without holding your breath, breathe out gently, counting from 1 to 5 again.
• Keep doing this for 3 to 5 minutes.

Apps like Prana Breath , MindShift CBT , Breath Ball , and Health through Breath can help make breathing exercises easier.

#3. Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR)

This technique could be done along with deep breathing exercises to help you release the built-up tension within your muscles and help you relax. ( * )

* Choose a quiet room.

* Remove tight clothing or items that may cause you uneasiness.

* Sit in a comfortable position.

* Take deep, slow breaths.

* Pay attention to all your muscles. Start with your face muscles. Clench your muscles as you inhale and feel your face muscles as you exhale.

* Repeat twice before moving on to other areas like arms, shoulders, chest, stomach, back, legs, feet.

#4. Meditation for Anxiety

Meditation help individuals who have GAD stop over-thinking and emotional turmoil.

Here’s how you can do it:

1. Choose some guided meditation videos from YouTube or an app .

2. Choose which time of the day is best for you, and do it on a regular basis, preferably every day.

3. Find a quiet place where you can be alone and away from distractions.

4. Devote all your attention to these mediations and forget about everything else going on in your life.

#5. Mindfulness Meditation

Mindfulness meditation allows individuals to calm their minds while also focusing on the present moment.

This can be done by following these steps:

1. Sit in a comfortable position and breathe deeply.

2. Notice how your body feels as you breathe in and out. Pay attention to everything that is happening to your body in this moment.

3. Start redirecting your attention toward what’s happening around you (like the sounds around you or even the thoughts running through your mind) without assessing if it’s positive or negative.

This helps you remain calm while reflecting on your thoughts and understanding what’s going on inside your body.

#6. Positive Affirmations

Repeat positive affirmations in your mind. The following are some example:

• I am strong and powerful.
• I am growing stronger and healthier.
• I believe in myself. I can overcome this.
• This will pass and I’ll be okay again.

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How Your Thinking May Be Contributing to Your Anxiety?

There is always a trigger for our emotions.

Most of the time, the situation itself is not the trigger. Rather it is the way we interpret or think about the situation that triggers our emotions.

#7. Become Aware of Your Anxious Thoughts

1. Stop for a moment, and mindfully, assess the current situation you’re faced with and describe it to yourself – how it make you feel and identify those feelings.

2. Become aware of your “negative automatic thoughts”. Go through a certain interaction and identify the first few thoughts that pop into your head. These are your “automatic thoughts”.

3. Write down your anxious thoughts for closer examination.

#8. Tackling Your Thoughts

Thoughts profoundly affect emotions and feelings in addition to behavior. By changing unhelpful, inaccurate thoughts, you can alleviate your anxiety and emotional distress.

Begin tackling these thoughts by doing to the following:

1. Search for evidence

Examine your thoughts objectively and go through the facts.

Use the following questions to search for evidence:

Have I had thoughts like these at other times in my life? Have my dire predictions come true?

1. Do I have experiences that would contradict my thoughts in any way?

2. What evidence do I have that what I believe is actually true?

3. Am I falling into a thinking trap (e.g., catastrophizing or all-or-nothing treatment)?

4. What would I tell a friend if he/she had the same thought?

5. Am I confusing a thought with a fact?

6. Am I basing my conclusion mostly on my feelings or on the true evidence?

While feelings are valid, they’re not evidence for supporting anxious thoughts. If, for example, you feel extremely anxious about doing a job interview, the anxiety is not evidence of how you will perform.

2. Rethink the risk

When you feel anxious, it’s easy to overestimate the odds of unwanted consequences actually occurring. Because disasters grab attention, we tend to focus on negative events, rather than positive ones.

That’s why you need to do a reality test and try to think about the real, objective odds of your predicted disaster.

Use the following questions to reassess the risk:

1. How many times have I predicted this outcome, and how many times has it actually happened?

2. How often does this happen to other people?

3. If a dear friend made this prediction, would I agree?

4. Am I assuming this will happen just because I’m feeling anxious, or is there a reasonable chance that it will really happen?

3. Imagine the worst-case scenarios

Even after searching for evidence and reassessing the risk, you might still believe that the events you fear might happen.

People who worry a lot, often, underestimate their own ability to cope and deal with consequences.

If you’re worried you might spill something at a party, consider the worst-case scenario.

Would people point and laugh at you? Not likely.

You might blush and feel embarrassed, but the party and your life would go on.

Some rude people may laugh, but most would forget the incident and certainly wouldn’t view you any differently.

Answering these questions will further help ease your worries:

1. Have I ever dealt with anything like this or worse in the past?

2. How much will this affect my life a year from now?

3. Do I know people who’ve dealt with something like this?

4. Do I know anyone I could turn to for help or support?

Related: How to Challenge and Change Your Negative Core Beliefs?

How Avoidance Intensifies Your Anxiety?

While escaping an anxiety-provoking situation can provide some relief in the short term, it also sends the message to your mind that you can’t tolerate the situation.

This will in turn intensify your anxiety and may cause you to avoid similar situations in the future. This limits your world as you have to avoid more and more situations.

Stop avoiding and start facing these situations. In other words, act opposite to the urge triggered by your anxiety.

#9. Make An Exposure List

Construct a list of exposure goals by doing the following:

1. Make a list of every single thing you’d have to do if you were to face your fear.

2. Arrange the items beginning with the least feared item at the bottom and ending with the most feared item on the top.

This constitutes your exposure hierarchy. If making this list is causing you some anxiety, remind yourself that you just need to think about facing the least feared item and that you don’t have to worry about the rest.

Besides, the goal is to actually want to invite anxiety into your life, and allow it to stay a while. As you face your fears may discover it’s not as terrifying as you thought.

#10. Face your fears

Start with the first item on your exposure list. Consider adding a few steps if the fear seems too difficult, such as looking at pictures of what you fear, imagining yourself in the feared situation, or talking about your fear with other people .

For example, if you fear flying, your list might look like this:

• Visiting an airport without flying
• Reading about airplane safety
• Talking to people about travel plans
• Going on a short flight with a friend
• Going on a longer flight by myself

When going through exposure process, consider the following:

* Don’t let lots of time go by without taking on another exposure item. Consider taking a step every day if you have the time and it feels okay to you.

* Stay with each step until your anxiety drops a little.

* Allow yourself to feel anxious, knowing that it’ll pass and that you need and want it. Don’t make a complete retreat unless you feel absolutely out of control.

* Try to avoid using crutches, such as alcohol, tranquilizers, distracting yourself with song lyrics, asking someone to reassure you, etc.

These might interfere with the effectiveness of exposure and prevent you from actually facing your fears.

Related: How to Defeat Social Anxiety and Build Confidence?

Natural supplements can be effective in alleviating anxiety.

1. Chamomile

Chamomile used in the form of tea, tablet, or extract can help relieve stress and anxiety.

A 2016 clinical trial  investigated the efficacy and safety of chamomile as a long-term treatment for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD).

Results show that taking chamomile helped reduce the severity of anxiety symptoms.

Note: people who experience allergic reactions to plants like ragweed, chrysanthemums, marigolds, and daisies may also experience allergic reactions to chamomile.

Note: Chamomile may interact with certain drugs like warfarin and cyclosporine. If you are taking any type of medication check with your doctor before consuming chamomile teas or supplements.

2. Lavender

Lavender is often used to help calm the nerves and alleviate anxiety.

You can use lavender in the following ways:

• essential oil in aromatherapy
• mixing the essential oil into a base oil for massage
• adding the oil or flowers to baths

A 2017 review article suggests that chemicals in lavender called linalool and linalyl acetate can have a calming effect on chemical receptors in the brain and constitute an effective short-term treatment for anxiety disorders.

3. Passionflower

Passionflower is shown to be effective in treating restlessness, nervousness, and anxiety.

You can take passionflower in the form of:

• Tea. To make the infusion boil some water with 3 or 4 tablespoons of passion flower and let it simmer for 10 minutes. You can sweeten with a little honey.
• Extract. You can also directly take the liquid (approximately 45 drops of the extract) or, if you prefer, you can dilute it with a little water to lessen the taste.
• Tablets. You can take 1 or 2 times a day.

4. Kava kava

Kava kava, or simply kava, is a shrub that is native to the islands of the Pacific Ocean used to relieve stress and alter mood.

A 2013 placebo-controlled trial  investigated the efficacy of kava as a treatment for Generalized Anxiety Disorder.

Participants taking kava showed a significant reduction in anxiety compared with those who received the placebo. The study also found kava to be safe.

The goal here is not to stop thinking anxious thoughts. We need to keep thinking and feeling.

But the goal is to believe less in your thoughts and realize that feeling a bit anxious doesn’t mean that something is wrong with you. The goal is to relate to thoughts and feelings, even the anxious ones, differently.

If you’re still struggling, try out these 10 Powerful Techniques To Control Your Negative Thoughts

Can Dehydration Cause Anxiety?

Yes, dehydration can cause anxiety.

When our body is dehydrated, it triggers a stress response that can result in feelings of anxiety or tension.

This happens because dehydration leads to a decrease in blood volume and blood pressure, which can activate the sympathetic nervous system responsible for the “fight or flight” response.

Additionally, dehydration affects the balance of electrolytes in our body, which can lead to increased anxiety levels and other symptoms like headaches, dizziness, and fatigue.

It is important to stay hydrated by drinking enough water to prevent such symptoms.

Is Anxiety Neurodivergent?

Anxiety is not necessarily considered a neurodivergent condition. Neurodivergent conditions are typically those that affect the way the brain works and processes information, such as autism, ADHD, dyslexia, and others.

Anxiety, on the other hand, is a natural response to stress and can affect anyone regardless of their neurology.

However, some neurodivergent individuals may be more prone to anxiety due to their specific challenges and experiences.

How Does Stress Contribute To Anxiety?

Stress can significantly contribute to the development and exacerbation of anxiety.

When individuals experience high levels of stress, their bodies release stress hormones such as cortisol, which activates the body’s “fight-or-flight” response.

While this response is adaptive in short-term situations, chronic stress can lead to prolonged activation of this response, causing disruptions in the body’s stress regulation systems.

Prolonged exposure to stress hormones can impair the functioning of the brain’s prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for regulating emotions and decision-making.

This impairment can make individuals more susceptible to experiencing anxiety symptoms.

Additionally, chronic stress can impact the hippocampus, a region of the brain involved in memory formation and regulation of emotions, leading to further anxiety-related difficulties.

Related: +20 Overgeneralization Examples & How to Avoid It

Is Anxiety A Lifelong Condition?

Anxiety is not always a lifelong condition, although some individuals may experience it chronically.

The duration and course of anxiety disorder can vary from person to person.

For some individuals, anxiety may be situational, triggered by specific events or periods of stress, and may resolve on its own or with appropriate treatment.

Others may experience recurrent episodes of anxiety throughout their lives.

It is important to remember that anxiety disorders are treatable, and many individuals find relief and learn effective coping strategies with therapy and/or medication.

Related:  How To Break The Cycle Of Performance Anxiety?

Are There Specific Triggers That Can Worsen Anxiety?

Yes, different triggers can exacerbate anxiety symptoms in individuals.

Triggers can vary depending on the type of anxiety disorder and the individual’s unique circumstances.

Common triggers include:

1. Stressful life events: Major life changes, conflicts, or traumatic experiences can intensify anxiety symptoms. 2. Social situations: Public speaking, social gatherings, or meeting new people can trigger social anxiety. 3. Health concerns: Physical health issues, chronic pain, or illness may increase anxiety levels. 4. Substance use: Certain substances like caffeine, alcohol, or drugs can worsen anxiety symptoms. 5. Time pressures: Excessive workloads, deadlines, or time constraints can contribute to higher anxiety levels. 6. Environmental factors: Loud noises, crowded spaces, or chaotic environments can trigger anxiety. 7. Certain phobias: Specific phobias, such as fear of flying or heights, can cause severe anxiety in relevant situations.

Identifying personal triggers and learning healthy coping strategies to manage anxiety in these situations can be helpful.

Related:  Impulsive vs Intrusive Thoughts (& How to Manage Them)

Can Anxiety Lead To Physical Health Problems?

Yes, prolonged and untreated anxiety can have adverse effects on physical health.

Anxiety activates the body’s stress response system, leading to increased heart rate, elevated blood pressure, and rapid breathing.

Over time, chronic anxiety can contribute to the development or worsening of various physical health problems, including:

1. Cardiovascular issues: Long-term anxiety can strain the cardiovascular system, increasing the risk of heart disease, hypertension, and heart attacks. 2. Gastrointestinal problems: Anxiety can disrupt digestion, leading to conditions like irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), stomach ulcers, or acid reflux. 3. Respiratory disorders: Frequent panic attacks or chronic anxiety may result in respiratory problems, such as asthma or shortness of breath. 4. Weakened immune system: Chronic anxiety can suppress the immune system, making individuals more susceptible to infections and illnesses. 5. Sleep disturbances: Anxiety often interferes with sleep patterns, leading to insomnia or inadequate rest, which can negatively impact overall health. 6. Muscle tension and pain: Anxiety-related muscle tension can contribute to chronic pain, headaches, or temporomandibular joint disorder (TMJ).

It is crucial to address anxiety symptoms promptly to prevent potential physical health complications.

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Is It Possible To Outgrow Anxiety?

While it is possible for some individuals to experience a decrease in anxiety symptoms over time, anxiety disorders do not simply vanish without intervention.

As children develop into adolescence and adulthood, they may acquire new coping mechanisms, skills, and tools that allow them to better manage their anxiety.

However, without proper treatment, anxiety symptoms may persist or resurface in different forms.

For some individuals, anxiety symptoms may subside as they enter less stress-inducing life stages or experience significant personal growth.

Moreover, with proper therapy or medication, individuals can learn effective strategies to manage their anxiety more successfully and lead fulfilling lives.

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Portions of this article were adapted from the book Cognitive Behavioral Therapy : The 21 Day CBT Workbook for Overcoming Fear, Anxiety And Depression, © 2019 by Jacob Greene. All rights reserved.

Portions of this article were adapted from the book Overcoming Anxiety for Dummies, © 2002 by Charles H. Elliott and Laura L. Smith . All rights reserved.

• Generalized Anxiety Disorder Study | Center for Psychotherapy Research | Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania (upenn.edu)
• Generalized anxiety disorder: Study looks at heart-brain link (medicalnewstoday.com)
• Generalized Anxiety Disorder – StatPearls – NCBI Bookshelf (nih.gov)
• Worry and Generalized Anxiety Disorder: A Review and Theoretical Synthesis of Evidence on Nature, Etiology, Mechanisms, and Treatment – PMC (nih.gov)
• Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) | Anxiety and Depression Association of America, ADAA
• Generalized anxiety disorder – Symptoms and causes – Mayo Clinic
• Learn More About General Anxiety Disorder (webmd.com)
• NIMH » Generalized Anxiety Disorder: When Worry Gets Out of Control (nih.gov)
• Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD): Symptoms and More (healthline.com)
• Overview – Generalised anxiety disorder in adults – NHS (www.nhs.uk)
• Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) | Johns Hopkins Medicine
• Generalized anxiety disorder – Wikipedia
• Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) – HelpGuide.org

Hadiah is a counselor who is passionate about supporting individuals on their journey towards mental well-being. Hadiah not only writes insightful articles on various mental health topics but also creates engaging and practical mental health worksheets.

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Homework Struggles May Not Be a Behavior Problem

Exploring some options to understand and help..

Posted August 2, 2022 | Reviewed by Abigail Fagan

• Mental health challenges and neurodevelopmental differences directly affect children's ability to do homework.
• Understanding what difficulties are getting in the way—beyond the usual explanation of a behavior problem—is key.
• Sleep and mental health needs can take priority over homework completion.

Chelsea was in 10th grade the first time I told her directly to stop doing her homework and get some sleep. I had been working with her since she was in middle school, treating her anxiety disorder. She deeply feared disappointing anyone—especially her teachers—and spent hours trying to finish homework perfectly. The more tired and anxious she got, the harder it got for her to finish the assignments.

One night Chelsea called me in despair, feeling hopeless. She was exhausted and couldn’t think straight. She felt like a failure and that she was a burden to everyone because she couldn’t finish her homework.

She was shocked when I told her that my prescription for her was to go to sleep now—not to figure out how to finish her work. I told her to leave her homework incomplete and go to sleep. We briefly discussed how we would figure it out the next day, with her mom and her teachers. At that moment, it clicked for her that it was futile to keep working—because nothing was getting done.

This was an inflection point for her awareness of when she was emotionally over-cooked and when she needed to stop and take a break or get some sleep. We repeated versions of this phone call several times over the course of her high school and college years, but she got much better at being able to do this for herself most of the time.

When Mental Health Symptoms Interfere with Homework

Kids with mental health or neurodevelopmental challenges often struggle mightily with homework. Challenges can come up in every step of the homework process, including, but not limited to:

• Remembering and tracking assignments and materials
• Getting the mental energy/organization to start homework
• Filtering distractions enough to persist with assignments
• Understanding unspoken or implied parts of the homework
• Remembering to bring finished homework to class
• Being in class long enough to know the material
• Tolerating the fear of not knowing or failing
• Not giving up the assignment because of a panic attack
• Tolerating frustration—such as not understanding—without emotional dysregulation
• Being able to ask for help—from a peer or a teacher and not being afraid to reach out

This list is hardly comprehensive. ADHD , autism spectrum disorder, social anxiety , generalized anxiety, panic disorder, depression , dysregulation, and a range of other neurodevelopmental and mental health challenges cause numerous learning differences and symptoms that can specifically and frequently interfere with getting homework done.

The Usual Diagnosis for Homework Problems is "Not Trying Hard Enough"

Unfortunately, when kids frequently struggle to meet homework demands, teachers and parents typically default to one explanation of the problem: The child is making a choice not to do their homework. That is the default “diagnosis” in classrooms and living rooms. And once this framework is drawn, the student is often seen as not trying hard enough, disrespectful, manipulative, or just plain lazy.

The fundamental disconnect here is that the diagnosis of homework struggles as a behavioral choice is, in fact, only one explanation, while there are so many other diagnoses and differences that impair children's ability to consistently do their homework. If we are trying to create solutions based on only one understanding of the problem, the solutions will not work. More devastatingly, the wrong solutions can worsen the child’s mental health and their long-term engagement with school and learning.

To be clear, we aren’t talking about children who sometimes struggle with or skip homework—kids who can change and adapt their behaviors and patterns in response to the outcomes of that struggle. For this discussion, we are talking about children with mental health and/or neurodevelopmental symptoms and challenges that create chronic difficulties with meeting homework demands.

How Can You Help a Child Who Struggles with Homework?

How can you help your child who is struggling to meet homework demands because of their ADHD, depression, anxiety, OCD , school avoidance, or any other neurodevelopmental or mental health differences? Let’s break this down into two broad areas—things you can do at home, and things you can do in communication with the school.

Helping at Home

The following suggestions for managing school demands at home can feel counterintuitive to parents—because we usually focus on helping our kids to complete their tasks. But mental health needs jump the line ahead of task completion. And starting at home will be key to developing an idea of what needs to change at school.

• Set an end time in the evening after which no more homework will be attempted. Kids need time to decompress and they need sleep—and pushing homework too close to or past bedtime doesn’t serve their educational needs. Even if your child hasn’t been able to approach the homework at all, even if they have avoided and argued the whole evening, it is still important for everyone to have a predictable time to shut down the whole process.
• If there are arguments almost every night about homework, if your child isn’t starting homework or finishing it, reframe it from failure into information. It’s data to put into problem-solving. We need to consider other possible explanations besides “behavioral choice” when trying to understand the problem and create effective solutions. What problems are getting in the way of our child’s meeting homework demands that their peers are meeting most of the time?
• Try not to argue about homework. If you can check your own anxiety and frustration, it can be more productive to ally with your child and be curious with them. Kids usually can’t tell you a clear “why” but maybe they can tell you how they are feeling and what they are thinking. And if your child can’t talk about it or just keeps saying “I don't know,” try not to push. Come back another time. Rushing, forcing, yelling, and threatening will predictably not help kids do homework.

Helping at School

The second area to explore when your neurodiverse child struggles frequently with homework is building communication and connections with school and teachers. Some places to focus on include the following.

• Label your child’s diagnoses and break down specific symptoms for the teachers and school team. Nonjudgmental, but specific language is essential for teachers to understand your child’s struggles. Breaking their challenges down into the problems specific to homework can help with building solutions. As your child gets older, help them identify their difficulties and communicate them to teachers.
• Let teachers and the school team know that your child’s mental health needs—including sleep—take priority over finishing homework. If your child is always struggling to complete homework and get enough sleep, or if completing homework is leading to emotional meltdowns every night, adjusting their homework demands will be more successful than continuing to push them into sleep deprivation or meltdowns.
• Request a child study team evaluation to determine if your child qualifies for services under special education law such as an IEP, or accommodations through section 504—and be sure that homework adjustments are included in any plan. Or if such a plan is already in place, be clear that modification of homework expectations needs to be part of it.

The Long-Term Story

I still work with Chelsea and she recently mentioned how those conversations so many years ago are still part of how she approaches work tasks or other demands that are spiking her anxiety when she finds herself in a vortex of distress. She stops what she is doing and prioritizes reducing her anxiety—whether it’s a break during her day or an ending to the task for the evening. She sees that this is crucial to managing her anxiety in her life and still succeeding at what she is doing.

Task completion at all costs is not a solution for kids with emotional needs. Her story (and the story of many of my patients) make this crystal clear.

Candida Fink, M.D. , is board certified in child/adolescent and general psychiatry. She practices in New York and has co-authored two books— The Ups and Downs of Raising a Bipolar Child and Bipolar Disorder for Dummies.

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How to Reduce Homework Stress

If homework is a source of frustration and stress in your home, it doesn’t have to be that way! Read on to learn effective strategies to reduce your child’s homework stress.

Author Katie Wickliff

Published March 2024

 If homework is a source of frustration and stress in your home, it doesn’t have to be that way! Read on to learn effective strategies to reduce your child’s homework stress.

• Key takeaways
• Homework stress can be a significant problem for children and their families
• An appropriate amount of quality homework can be beneficial for students
• Parents can help reduce homework stress in several key ways

Table of contents

• Homework stress effects
• How to reduce homework stress

As a parent who has felt the frustration of watching my child be reduced to tears because of her homework each night, I’ve often wondered: do these math worksheets and reading trackers really make a difference to a child’s academic success? Or does homework cause stress without having a positive impact on learning? 

If your child experiences a significant amount of homework stress, you may feel at a loss to help. However, there are several things you can do at home to minimize the negative effects of this stress on your child–and you! We’ve put together a list of research-based practices that can help your child better handle their homework load.

The Effects of Homework Stress on Students

Does homework cause stress? Short answer: Yes. It’s been well documented that too much homework can cause stress and anxiety for students–and their parents. However, do the benefits of homework outweigh the costs? Is homework “worth” the frustration and exhaustion that our children experience? 

Findings on the benefits of homework at the elementary school level are mixed, with studies showing that homework appears to have more positive effects under certain conditions for certain groups of students.

After examining decades of studies on the relationship between homework and academic achievement, leading homework researcher Harris M. Cooper has proposed the “10-minute rule,” suggesting that homework be limited to 10 minutes per grade level. For example, children in 3rd grade should do no more than 30 minutes of homework daily, while a 1st grader should do no more than 10 minutes of homework. The National Parent Teacher Association and the National Education Association both endorse this guideline as a general rule of thumb. 

Because of these research findings, Doodle believes that an appropriate amount of quality homework can help students feel more positive about learning and can provide parents with a critical connection to their child’s school experience . But to keep learning positive, we need to reduce the amount of stress both students and parents feel about homework.

1. Routine, Routine, Routine

Creating an after-school routine and sticking to it helps children feel organized, but with sports, tutoring, or music lessons, many children have varying weekday schedules. As a former classroom teacher and private tutor, I suggest that families post a weekly schedule somewhere visible and communicate that schedule with their child. 

At our house, we have a dry-erase calendar posted on the wall. Every Sunday evening, I write both of my children’s schedules for the following week–including homework time. We go through the calendar together, and they reference it often throughout the week. I can tell both my son and daughter feel better when they know when they’ll get their homework done.

2. Create a Homework Space

Ideally, your child should have a dedicated homework space. It doesn’t matter if that space is a desk, a dining room table, or a kitchen countertop. What does matter is that the homework area is tidy, because an unorganized homework area is very distracting.

3. Start Homework Early

Encourage your child to start their homework as early as possible. Help them review their assignments, make a plan for what needs to be completed, and then dive in. Naturally, children are more tired later in the evening which can lead to more stress.

4. Encourage Breaks

If you can see your child becoming frustrated or overwhelmed by their homework, encourage them to take a breather and come back to it later. As a teacher and tutor, I called this a “brain break” and believe these breaks are essential. Taking a short break will give your child a chance to step away from a frustrating problem or assignment.

5. It’s Okay to Ask for Help

Sometimes, homework can become just too stressful and overwhelming. In that case, it really is okay to stop. Children can learn to advocate for themselves by making a list of questions for their teacher and asking for help the next day. Depending on their age, you might need to help role-play how to approach their teacher with their frustrations. 

Additionally, parents should never feel afraid to contact their child’s teacher to talk about homework issues. When I was teaching elementary school, I always wanted parents to feel comfortable reaching out about any issues, including homework stress.

6. Get Plenty of Rest

Sleep is critical to a child’s overall wellbeing , which includes their academic performance. Tired kids can’t concentrate as well, which can lead to feeling more overwhelmed about homework assignments. According to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, kids aged 6-12 should get at least 9 hours of sleep each night.

7. Consider a Homework Group

Organizing a homework group a few times a week is another way for your child to view homework more positively. Working as a group encourages collaboration, while discussions can solidify concepts learned in class.

8. Encourage Positivity

No matter what your school experience was like, it’s important to model a growth mindset for your child. A growth mindset is the belief that your abilities can develop and improve over time. So if your child says something like “ I can’t do this! ” first acknowledge their frustration. Then, encourage them to say, “ I may not understand this yet, but I will figure it out. ” Speaking positively about tough experiences takes practice, but it will go a long way in reducing homework stress for your child.

9. Develop Skills With Fun Games

Feeling stressed about homework is no fun. Completing worksheets and memorizing facts is necessary, but playing games is a great way to inject some excitement into learning. Doodle’s interactive math app is filled with interactive exercises, engaging math games, and unique rewards that help kids develop their skills while having fun.

Lower Math Anxiety with DoodleMath

Does your child struggle with math anxiety? DoodleMath is an award-winning math app f illed with fun, interactive math questions aligned to state standards. Doodle creates a unique work program tailored to each child’s skill level to boost confidence and reduce math anxiety. Try it free  today!

FAQs About Homework Stress

Many studies have shown that homework and stress often go hand-in-hand, often because many children feel pressure to perform perfectly or they have trouble managing their emotions–they get overwhelmed or flooded easily.

You can help your child reduce homework stress in several ways, including by establishing a routine, creating a homework space, encouraging breaks, and making homework fun with online games or math apps.

Lesson credits

Katie Wickliff

Katie holds a master’s degree in Education from the University of Colorado and a bachelor’s degree in both Journalism and English from The University of Iowa. She has over 15 years of education experience as a K-12 classroom teacher and Orton-Gillingham certified tutor. Most importantly, Katie is the mother of two elementary students, ages 8 and 11. She is passionate about math education and firmly believes that the right tools and support will help every student reach their full potential.

Parents, sign up for a DoodleMath subscription and see your child become a math wizard!

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