The Opposite of Worry: The Playful Parenting Approach to Childhood Anxieties and Fears Paperback – September 10, 2013

This book was very useful, it’s interesting and not boring. Lots of ideas of what to try to help your children’s anxiety.

I bought this book after dealing with an increasingly anxious preschooler. My daughter that always been an anxious kid, and this got even worse with us facing a global pandemic, having to idolate ourselves, and missing out on interactions with people we know and love. Add to that the passing of her grandma, and we've had some extremely difficult behaviors.This book hasn't completely erased our issues - I'm sure there is no book out there that could! But this book has a lot of excellent analogies, metaphors, and strategies on how to cope and help your child cope with anxious behaviors. We had a few therapy sessions, but those did very little for us. Instead, me reading this book and putting the strategies into place has nearly eliminated my daughter's anxiety attacks. She has been willing to try new things and is no longer fearful of many of the things that caused her terror before.

My daughter is 5 and has had severe anxiety, particularly related to separating from me. We've seen experts since she was 2.5 as the anxiety was so bad it was affecting her sleep. She'd wake hourly (and scream, panicked) to make sure I was still next to her. My daughter is visually impaired and has sensory processing issues. She was legally blind for the first couple of years of her life and relied on me for navigation and to feel comfortable in the world (with her separate sensory issues). Not an easy case. We had kindergarten assessments coming up and a mom I met whose daughter also suffers from anxiety recommended this book. It's helped us far more than any therapist/doctor/child educator we spoke with and it helped us within weeks. Seriously, my daughter has NEVER gone to a friend's house alone, or to a class alone (save for preschool - but I went with her for months while we desensitized her to it) or even let me go to the bathroom alone at good friends' homes. Yet last weekend she went and did two kindergarten assessments with new teachers and new kids in new places WITHOUT ME for over an hour each time and she came out BEAMING! In our case my daughter was scared I'd "disappear" and I really needed to see this from her perspective. Instead of saying there was no need to worry about that, I loved her, of course I'd be back, I really thought about it and realized if I thought she might disappear if she went to a particular place, of course I'd NEVER let her go. I'd be terrified just like she is! I conveyed this to her and told her Daddy wouldn't let me go places if I thought I might disappear, my parents wouldn't, my friends wouldn't. Also to really test the matter, for a whole week, I tried disappearing with her assistance, using magic words, etc. It never worked. So I suggested even though she worries I might, maybe she doesn't need to believe those worries.I also pretended I was very worried she might leave me and go to the North Pole. Dr Cohen teaches you to empower the child and to make it fun. And we practiced being a little bit scared so she learned that just because you might feel a little unnerved it doesn't mean everything is going to get worse. This is keeping your child at their edge.I feel like no matter what your situation, if your child is anxious, there will be information and ideas to help in this book. You do have to figure out how to adapt tactics and strategies to your family/situation...but that's the playful part and it's honestly fun. With mind blowing results. As all the kids went off with the teachers and my daughter went with them, (with NO apparent anxiety at the second school), I wanted to jump up and down with amazement. Dr Cohen, you have changed our lives and I'm telling EVERYONE about your book. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

I read and listened to this book cover to cover. Even though I myself have anxiety I was at a complete loss how to deal with my daughter's crying and angry outbursts at going to bed. Reading the book gave me insight into what we were doing wrong and now hopefully through love and acceptance I can better guide her inner strength to come out. Highly recommend.

The Opposite of Worry: The Playful Parenting Approach to Childhood Anxieties is an excellent book. Wish I would have had it years ago, but grateful that it is not too late. Easy to read. Mr. Cohen tells it like it is and gives specific descriptions and solutions and opens up the readers eyes to how their children are seeing the world with their anxieties. I would recommend this to any parent!

This is truly one of the best books on how to manage children's and own anxiety in playful and fun ways. The author is kind, humorous and gives lots of intelligent inside and tips. I have read lots of literature on the topic per my profession and this is truly a gem to parents!

I am half the way through the book but it describes many situations in a very understandable manner.If I have read this book two years ago... this should have helped me a lot and save a lot of worries with my child.Every parent of a more sensitive and emotional child should read this book for some very easy and helping techniques or to know how to identify a good specialist to consult his child if necessary.

Larry has done it again! Playful Parenting was crucial to my family in connecting with our kids, and learning that with connection and play, even the most seemingly insurmountable problems can be solved, in a fun way. In The Opposite of Worry, Larry focuses on anxiety and has countless ideas for helping children (and adults) overcome a fear-based approach to life. As always, Larry's tone is collaborative and never judgmental. He is an amazing mental health practitioner who provides positive support and resourceful ideas!

Great practical book highly recommend.Lots of useful suggestions and explanations to help address anxiety and improve child rens confidence

I think possibly the most meaningful part of this book for me, as the parent of a child who struggles with anxiety, is the sense of companionship I get from it. As in, "Your kid is not the only one who behaves like this, and your frustration and sense of hopelessness and helplessness is what all parents feel in the face of it." The clear outlining of many of the common pitfalls of trying to approach childhood anxiety "constructively" (I put that in quotes because debating the logic of a child's anxieties with them is totally counter-productive, and yet I found myself doing it again and again before I read this book)—in a humorous, compassionate way, really helped me see that yes, if I keep doing what I'm doing, I'm going to get more of what I don't want. However, if I look at the biology of anxiety as Larry presents it, and the harness the power of playfulness and empathy the way Larry encourages, I can see some progress and find some relief. Hallelujah.Larry Cohen has, once again, written a book that I would like to buy 100 copies of and hand out to the frustrated parents I meet and chat with every day. It's a clear, legible roadmap to the promised land of more connection, more ease, and more comfort for you and your anxious kid. That's not to say that it's always easy to put these ideas into motion... the biggest challenge for me is finding the daily support and resources as a parent to have the energy and "fullness" inside to bring positive energy and new strategies into the mix. Many of us are so isolated from each other in the community that we are flailing away within our four walls, trying to have all the answers, and feeling quite alone in the experience.So. Buy the book. (Actually, buy at least two copies, because you are going to want to lend one out, and you'll need one dog-eared copy to read again and again to help ground yourself in what WORKS and find some renewed hope that there IS something you can do to bring more peace to your family). Read the book. It's fun to read. Read it several times, you'll find new things each time. And then do everything you can to network with other parents, to find time to TALK to each other about your challenges and triumphs as you parent.Patty Wipfler's Hand in Hand Parenting site is a great place to go to find "empathy buddies" in your time zone to chat with. I admit that with four kids 12 and under, self-care and sourcing support is often the first thing I overlook, but I do know that none of us can do this job alone as joyfully as we can do it when we share the journey.Larry's book gives all of us parents with anxious kids a solid, thorough reference and resource guide to refer to again and again... now all we have to do is keep talking to each other, supporting each other as we do our very best for our kids and ourselves.

A really useful book. The autor explains clearly and without being condescending, what is anxiety and how to help children (and adults) to control it. Highly recommended for all parents who want to help their children to understand their emotions and fears. Thank you very much!

every parent should read this for their own peace of mind, the preceding Playful Parenting and The Art of Roughhousing

Hands down, one of my favourite books I’ve read on anxiety in children and how to support them. Provides the reader with an understanding of what is happening inside the brain when anxiety strikes, and how to guide and support your child through this, while being respectful and sensitive to your child’s emotions. Good for both professionals and parents. I recommend this book to all my clients with anxious children!