Elizabeth Penela, Ph.D.
 For many children, anxiety is like a storm. They eventually pass, but anxiety and storms are intense, messy, and can come out of nowhere! When these storms show up, parents often want to step in, talk kids through it, and teach them how to deal with it. That instinct comes with good intention, but the middle of an anxiety storm is actually one of the hardest times for children (or anyone!) to talk through thoughts and feelings rationally. Instead, in these big moments, it’s most helpful to focus on helping our kids get through that wave (while we ride our own emotion wave too!). So, how do you stay calm, to then be able to help your cope with anxiety? Let’s review evidence-based strategies to identify these incoming anxiety storms, calm ourselves down, and help your child cope with those intense feelings of anxiety. If you prefer to watch or listen, check out Dr. Eli Penela’s on-demand webinar on the same topic!
How Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) Helped Me Cope with Anxiety while Hiking the Inca Trail2/13/2025
 One of my bucket list items for a long time was to hike the Inca Trail - the famous 4-day hiking trail in the Andes mountains of Peru. My parents were born and raised in Peru, and I’ve traveled frequently to Lima to visit extended family, and visited Cuzco as a kid, and then again in college. But I had not ventured to do the Inca Trail before because I could not wrap my head around no access to real bathrooms or showers for 4 days! Once I realized I could cope with that – I knew this was an adventure I wanted to experience.
This past summer, I was lucky enough to go on this awe-inspiring hike – surrounded by the beauty of the Andes for four days, and ending the trail in Machu Picchu. I knew the hike would be physically challenging, but what caught me by surprise, was how this experience also challenged me mentally and emotionally. I actively used coping tools that I discuss with my patients in session, and was grateful that they helped me enjoy this incredible and awe-inspiring hike. College is a time that is full of new and exciting experiences - but it’s also a time of newfound stresses, pressures, and decisions (e.g., "Is this the career I want to pursue?" "How can I best prepare to get the summer internship?").  Anxiety makes a lot of aspects of college life even more difficult: between relationships, moving, difficult coursework, and life decisions, there are plenty of things for anxiety and worry to feed on. And one aspect of college seems custom-made to fuel anxiety - tests! Whether it's the first exam for a class and you don’t know what to expect, the all-important final exams, or tests related to graduate school admissions (LSAT, MCAT, GRE), anxiety often rears its ugly head, which actually makes sense! These are really important tests, and of course you want to do well on them. But when anxiety gets in the way of your ability to focus, leads to feelings of panic or overwhelm, or makes you freeze up altogether - it’s time to take action. Let’s review signs of test anxiety and research-backed strategies to cope with it.
The holidays can be so much fun for kids- they get to spend time with you, see extended family, play with new toys, bake cookies, and watch holiday movie faves! As a parent, it feels GREAT to know that your children are enjoying that special space you made for them.  But as the return to school looms ahead, it can bring up feelings of anxiety or dread for kids and teens. Watching your children struggle as they think about going back to school can be so hard.
You can't magically erase your children’s worries (if only!), but you can give them coping tools to help ease their back-to-school anxiety. If your child or teen is feeling worried, it’s SO tempting to immediately GIVE them information that will help them feel better! But if your child is a chronic worrier who often gets stuck, this doesn't usually help much over the long run. Instead of explaining all the reasons why they shouldn't feel nervous… what if you could help your child come up with the information themselves?
How can we do this? The key is in using Socratic Questioning! Check out this blog post to learn how to use this important CBT tool to help your child or teen cope with anxiety. |
Dr. Penela proudly provides evidence-based therapy services in English and Spanish. In-person appointments available in South Florida: Weston, Pembroke Pines, Miramar, Cooper City, Boca Raton, Davie, Parkland, Hollywood, Fort Lauderdale, Plantation and surrounding areas.
Tele-health sessions available to individuals residing in all 43 PSYPACT participating states, including Florida.
Tele-health sessions available to individuals residing in all 43 PSYPACT participating states, including Florida.
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