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© 2012 Jenna Smith. All rights reserved.
Jenna K. Smith, MSWChild and Family Psychotherapist
My Blog
Children and Trauma
The events this past Friday have left so many feeling sad, angry and anxious. I was at home while my children were napping when I received a text from a friend. “I’m so sorry to hear. I pray that everyone is okay.” I just assumed she meant to send the text to someone else. When I realized what was going on, I was in disbelief. How is this happening again? As a parent, I was so grateful to know that my children were safe. I...
Tips For Parents: How To Help Your Child Improve Their Focus and Attention
As I’m sitting here at Starbucks writing this blog on strategies for attention and focus-I have found myself completely distracted. I’m currently sitting at a long row of small tables completely surrounded by customers. To my right, a man and woman are having an intense conversation entailing the current housing market. To my right is a new mother with her baby and a friend enjoying one another’s company. It is hard not to eavesdrop or feel like I’m intruding on their conversations. It is even...
How To Help A Grieving Child
Grieving the loss of a loved one is a complicated, difficult and painful process to go through. What about for children? What does grief look like for them? As parents, grandparents, siblings, and other relatives of children, it is sometimes hard to know how to help a child who has experienced a significant loss. Below are some tips on how to be there for a child who is grieving. Support Let the child know you are there for them. When a child experiences a loss-their...
Tips For Parents-How To Ease Your Child’s Anxiety
Seeing your child worry is not easy-especially if it starts to interfere in their everyday life (i.e. going to school, making friends, being able to fall asleep at night, taking family vacations). If you have a child who is anxious, you are not alone. Here are some tips to help ease their anxiety and give them some “tools for their toolbox.” Deep breathing (have them take 5-10 deep breaths-in through their nose, out through their mouth). Encourage your child to think of 5 good things...
How to survive the holidays after a loss…
I was recently reminded of how precious and fragile life is. My uncle passed away a few days before Thanksgiving. While it was a time of celebration, gatherings, and joy for many, it was a very sad time for my family. Holidays that come after the loss of a loved one have special meaning for us. These dates are painful reminders that we will never see our loved one again, and that life will go on without him or her, whether or not we like...
Does exercise combat depression?
We have all heard it. Exercise is good for you. It improves your health, boosts your energy, and can combat certain health conditions and diseases among many other benefits. So if exercise is so good for you, as a child and family therapist, I have wondered, can it help combat symptoms of depression? According to Joelle Ruben, MSW, LSW, in Social Work Today (Vol. 12 No. 1 P. 22), “A growing body of research shows that exercise can be an effective adjunct treatment for depression.”...