AT Parenting Survival | Raising Kids with OCD & Anxiety

Most parents think the hardest part of raising a child with anxiety or OCD is figuring out what to do.
But the truth is, learning the skills is just the beginning.
In this episode, I walk you through the three stages parents naturally move through when learning to handle OCD, from that first moment of awareness, to the messy middle of trying to implement strategies, to the point where things start to feel more integrated and sustainable.
Because knowing what to do and being able to actually do it consistently are two very different things.
If you’ve ever found yourself second-guessing your responses, feeling stuck in patterns you know aren’t helping, or wondering why this feels so much harder than it “should,” you are not alone.

This episode will help you understand where you are in the process and why that middle stage can feel so overwhelming, even when you’re doing everything “right.”
And more importantly, it will help you see what kind of support actually makes a difference as you move forward.
If you are a parent who knows what to do but struggles to follow through consistently, or you feel stuck in that in-between stage where nothing quite clicks yet, this episode is for you.
❤️ For more in-depth support join the AT Parenting Community where we walk this journey with you.

Resources:
IOCDF Treatment Guideline
Podcast episode: The Power of the Pause

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This podcast episode is sponsored by NOCD. NOCD provides online OCD therapy in the US, UK, Australia and Canada. To schedule your free 15 minute consultation to see if NOCD is a right fit for you and your child, go to
https://go.treatmyocd.com/at_parenting

This podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be used to replace the guidance of a qualified professional.

Parents, do you need more support?

🌸 Here’s are resources I offer parents 👇🏻❤️

Online classes for parents raising kids with anxiety and OCD:
https://atparentingsurvivalschool.com

Join the AT Parenting Community (A membership designed to support parents raising kids with anxiety or OCD):
https://atparentingcommunity.com

Take one of my FREE webinars:
www.Natashadaniels.com/webinars

Check out my books:
www.Natashadaniels.com/books

🌸 Other social places I hang out:

http://www.facebook.com/ATparentingSurvival
http://www.pinterest.com/ATparentingSurvival
http://www.instagram.com/ATparentingSurvival
http://www.twitter.com/Parentingsurvival

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When you’re parenting a child with anxiety or OCD, it’s easy to get caught in a constant push to fix, improve, and move things forward. But when our expectations don’t match where our child actually is, it can quietly create more frustration, more pressure, and more disconnection for everyone involved.

In this episode, we explore how to recognize when expectations are starting to do more harm than good, why they develop in the first place, and how to gently adjust them without losing hope or momentum. You’ll learn how to shift from pushing for outcomes to supporting capacity, so your child can build skills in a way that actually sticks, and you can find more peace in the process.

If you are a parent who feels stuck between wanting more for your child and feeling discouraged by where things are, this episode will help you reset your expectations in a way that supports both growth and connection.

❤️Join my free series at www.atparentingsurvivalseries.com
Get the handout for this episode at www.natashadaniels.com/handouts

***
This podcast episode is sponsored by NOCD. NOCD provides online OCD therapy in the US, UK, Australia and Canada. To schedule your free 15 minute consultation to see if NOCD is a right fit for you and your child, go to
https://go.treatmyocd.com/at_parenting

This podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be used to replace the guidance of a qualified professional.

Parents, do you need more support?

🌸 Here’s are resources I offer parents 👇🏻❤️

Online classes for parents raising kids with anxiety and OCD:
https://atparentingsurvivalschool.com

Join the AT Parenting Community (A membership designed to support parents raising kids with anxiety or OCD):
https://atparentingcommunity.com

Take one of my FREE webinars:
www.Natashadaniels.com/webinars

Check out my books:
www.Natashadaniels.com/books

🌸 Other social places I hang out:

http://www.facebook.com/ATparentingSurvival
http://www.pinterest.com/ATparentingSurvival
http://www.instagram.com/ATparentingSurvival
http://www.twitter.com/Parentingsurvival

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Good communication can feel like the missing piece when you’re raising a child with anxiety or OCD. You’re talking, explaining, reassuring, and trying to help, but somehow the conversations still feel stuck, tense, or like they’re going nowhere.

In this episode, I unpack what good communication actually looks like, and why it’s not about saying the perfect thing or fixing the problem in the moment.
We’ll talk about how communication builds trust, how to recognize what might be shutting it down, and why slowing down and focusing on connection can often move things forward more than pushing for change.

If you are a parent who feels like every conversation turns into a struggle, or your child shuts down, gets defensive, or won’t open up, this episode will help you rethink where to start and how to create the kind of communication that actually supports progress.

📍 Join my FREE series: Survival Tools for Parents Raising Kids with Anxiety or OCD

***
This podcast episode is sponsored by NOCD. NOCD provides online OCD therapy in the US, UK, Australia and Canada. To schedule your free 15 minute consultation to see if NOCD is a right fit for you and your child, go to
https://go.treatmyocd.com/at_parenting

This podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be used to replace the guidance of a qualified professional.

Parents, do you need more support?

🌸 Here’s are resources I offer parents 👇🏻❤️

Online classes for parents raising kids with anxiety and OCD:
https://atparentingsurvivalschool.com

Join the AT Parenting Community (A membership designed to support parents raising kids with anxiety or OCD):
https://atparentingcommunity.com

Take one of my FREE webinars:
www.Natashadaniels.com/webinars

Check out my books:
www.Natashadaniels.com/books

🌸 Other social places I hang out:

http://www.facebook.com/ATparentingSurvival
http://www.pinterest.com/ATparentingSurvival
http://www.instagram.com/ATparentingSurvival
http://www.twitter.com/Parentingsurvival

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When our child is anxious or stuck in OCD, everything can feel urgent. The questions, the reassurance seeking, the distress, the pressure to fix it right away. As parents, our instinct is often to respond quickly so we can calm things down. But sometimes the most powerful thing we can do is pause.
In this episode, I talk about the power of the pause and why slowing down our response can actually help our kids build resilience and break the anxiety and OCD cycle. A pause gives us space to respond intentionally instead of reacting out of stress, fear, or urgency. It also models for our kids that discomfort doesn’t have to be solved immediately.
If you are a parent who feels pulled to jump in quickly when your child is anxious, asks for reassurance, or gets stuck in OCD loops, this episode will help you see how a small pause can create big shifts in how you support your child.
🧡 Register for my free series Survival Tools for Parents Raising Kids with Anxiety or OCD
Links mentioned in podcast:

OCD Reassurance video
Podcast: How to Use Reassurance Cards
Podcast: How to Create an Effective Incentive Plan
Podcast: How to Help Kids with Perfectionism

***
This podcast episode is sponsored by NOCD. NOCD provides online OCD therapy in the US, UK, Australia and Canada. To schedule your free 15 minute consultation to see if NOCD is a right fit for you and your child, go to
https://go.treatmyocd.com/at_parenting

This podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be used to replace the guidance of a qualified professional.

Parents, do you need more support?

🌸 Here’s are resources I offer parents 👇🏻❤️

Online classes for parents raising kids with anxiety and OCD:
https://atparentingsurvivalschool.com

Join the AT Parenting Community (A membership designed to support parents raising kids with anxiety or OCD):
https://atparentingcommunity.com

Take one of my FREE webinars:
www.Natashadaniels.com/webinars

Check out my books:
www.Natashadaniels.com/books

🌸 Other social places I hang out:

http://www.facebook.com/ATparentingSurvival
http://www.pinterest.com/ATparentingSurvival
http://www.instagram.com/ATparentingSurvival
http://www.twitter.com/Parentingsurvival

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Parents often hear the same questions from their child again and again, and it can be hard to know if answering is helping or making things worse. In this episode, I break down the important difference between anxiety reassurance and OCD reassurance.
While they can look similar on the surface, they serve very different purposes. Anxiety reassurance often comes from a child not trusting their ability to cope, while OCD reassurance acts as a compulsion that keeps the OCD cycle going. Knowing the difference can change how you respond.
If you are a parent who feels stuck answering the same worries, fears, or “what if” questions, this episode will help you understand when reassurance supports your child and when it unintentionally grows anxiety and OCD.

Links discussed during episode:
Get the PDF handout for this episode here
Free series: Survival Tools for Parents Raising Kids with Anxiety or OCD
The SPACE Study Guide Course
Video: How Reassurance is a Compulsion
Podcast: How to Use Reassurance Cards
Podcast: How to Create an Effective Incentive Plan
***
This podcast episode is sponsored by NOCD. NOCD provides online OCD therapy in the US, UK, Australia and Canada. To schedule your free 15 minute consultation to see if NOCD is a right fit for you and your child, go to
https://go.treatmyocd.com/at_parenting

This podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be used to replace the guidance of a qualified professional.

Parents, do you need more support?

🌸 Here’s are resources I offer parents 👇🏻❤️

Online classes for parents raising kids with anxiety and OCD:
https://atparentingsurvivalschool.com

Join the AT Parenting Community (A membership designed to support parents raising kids with anxiety or OCD):
https://atparentingcommunity.com

Take one of my FREE webinars:
www.Natashadaniels.com/webinars

Check out my books:
www.Natashadaniels.com/books

🌸 Other social places I hang out:

http://www.facebook.com/ATparentingSurvival
http://www.pinterest.com/ATparentingSurvival
http://www.instagram.com/ATparentingSurvival
http://www.twitter.com/Parentingsurvival
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.