Our 8 year old daughter developed OCD and anxiety disorder during 2nd grade. We ended up pulling her out of school early and our whole family was in upheaval as we grappled to get a diagnosis and treatment. We eventually set appointments for CBT and Psychology but couldn’t get scheduled for two months. It was taking two hours to get our daughter to bed due to her complex routine. Every activity in our day was affected by OCD and it was awful. In desperation I looked for something that would help us at home while we waited for therapy to begin so I ordered turnaroundanxiety. My daughter steadfastly refused to listen to the program so I ended up bribing her! I promised her a treat each time she listened to a section. That did the trick and she immediately listened to the first one. I was surprised how engaged she was with an audio program versus a video. I think its very thoughtful how the program is designed with different voices, the doctors and the journey. The background sounds etc. are well-produced to take you on the journey. If your child is young, like mine, I think its important to listen together so you can use some of the language throughout the week and help with the journal activities. The journal activities are really excellent. I will say that the journal activities result in some hardcore and difficult conversations because they are helping your child combat their fear. We decided, as parents that mom is better suited to working through the journal. So, I’d suggest you think about which parent is better about conversing with your child about their fear.
We are only on #4 because I’ve limited her to one or two a week so she can process and put into action the knowledge. I cannot believe the results. Last night, my daughter was able to get into bed and we actually read a book together like we used to do before OCD took over. I know parents who are dealing with complex rituals and anxiety will understand the magnitude of this.
The other thing we’ve done is to cancel all summer activities: camp, lesson etc. We decided to let her just be a kid and have the time and space to combat “Mr. Bossy” (name for her OCD) and anxiety. I was really worried about having an unscheduled summer but it has turned out to be a very positive decision. Our daughter is riding her bike (after we gave up on trying to get the helmet on), playing with her dolls and basically being a kid. Her anxiety is much, much lower giving her the cognitive ability to actively fight Mr. Bossy. It feels like she is doing this on her own and we are providing limited guidance. This results in her feeling happy and prideful when she is successful.
In short, this program is working. I can’t thank you enough. We’ll let you know what happens once we finish all the modules. I highly recommend this to parents.