Dates: Groups start in October, January and April, and run for eight weeks.Note: Parent sessions run at the same time as the children’s group (4:00 – 5:00 pm). Children and parents will meet in separate rooms. Time: Mondays 4:00 – 5:00 pm Place: Mental Health Building, P4, 4500 Oak Street, BC Children’s Hospital Goals: This is a psycho-educational group for children to learn how to cope with anxiety. The group focus is on understanding and identifying anxiety and how it affects the body, thoughts, and behaviour. The children learn and practice coping strategies and tools to conquer fears, worries, and physical symptoms related to anxiety, including trouble with sleeping, stomach aches, school-related concerns, and nervous habits. A number of fun projects are used to facilitate the learning process, such as preparing a “tool box” to trap and tame “worry dragons.” The concepts covered in the group are based on the book Taming Worry Dragons by Dr. E. Jane Garland and Dr. Sandra L. Clark. There will be a concurrent parent group focused on helping parents to understand and identify anxiety in their children, to learn how to deal more effectively with an anxious child, and to learn the coping strategies/tools the children will be learning to better facilitate practice and modeling. We ask that families obtain a copy of the book in order to help their children with practice and support in the battle against problematic worry, and for ongoing support as coaches once the group is finished. In order to cover the printing costs of the book, the purchase price is about $18. We also like to schedule a follow-up session three to four months after the group has finished.For more information, contact our psychologist at 604-875-7023, or our social worker at 604-875-2653. Please note that this is a very popular group. We accept referrals throughout the year, although we usually have a waiting list when we review referrals in September and January. All children must have been diagnosed either by a psychiatrist or a psychologist. We accept kids with a diagnosis of anxiety disorder and limit the group to children who have complex, difficult anxiety problems. We do not accept children with ADHD, Tourette’s Syndrome or PDD. We review referrals for suitability to ensure that the group best meets the child’s needs.