Making Sense of the World When the World Doesn’t Make Sense: Helping Kids and Teens Cope with Existential Anxiety Presented by the Minnesota Association for Children's Mental Health
It goes without saying that 2020 has brought a lot of changes to life on this planet. It also goes without saying that anxiety and other mental health concerns are clearly exacerbated by all the tumult of this year. We expect that adults are grappling with the hard questions of finances, purpose, safety, freedom, life and death, but we often minimize the effects of these concerns on our children and teens. We often presume that they are simply frustrated about canceled soccer games and lonely birthday parties. We presume that the larger existential questions we adults are grappling with do not apply to them. This is a dangerous misconception. It is crucial that we identify the existential questions plaguing many of our children and adolescents to aid them in addressing these difficult questions.
During this workshop the presenter will discuss existential anxiety and depression, define factors contributing to it, identify populations most at risk, and learn and practice strategies to intervene effectively.
Learning Objectives:
Participants will be able to define existential depression and anxiety and identify traits that differentiate this type of mood dysregulation from others.
Participants will be able to identify populations of children and youth at higher risk for experiencing existential crises.
Participants will be able to identify at least 3 effective interventions to treat existential depression and anxiety.
Participants will be able to identify at least 3 strategies to aid with self-regulation while helping children and youth address existential questioning that providers may be experiencing themselves.
Presented by Heather Boorman, MSW, LCSW. Heather is the founding director of Boorman Counseling in Western Wisconsin. She specializes as a trauma therapist and is a nationally recognized provider, speaker and advocate for neurodiverse children and adults. Heather is the author of The Gifted Kids Workbook and writes & podcasts at The Fringy Bit, to provide real support to parents who love a differently-wired child.
Level: Basic | For: Professionals & Parents | Ages Addressed: 5 - 18 | Includes Clinical Content
Tuesday, November 3 9 a.m. – 12 p.m. CST Live Webinar | 3 CEHs | $45 (special fall rate)
Webinar Recording: Not able to join us live? No problem. This webinar, along with all of our Fall Series webinars, will be recorded and available to watch for 30 days following the event. For access to the recording, please register prior to the webinar.
Lynne, Maggie, Julie, Martha, Sarah Holden and Sarah Thomforde.
Lake Harriet Student Support Team