As a licensed clinical professional counselor that works with those managing food allergies, I'm often asked for anxiety management tips. Before offering any guidance, I always explain that anxiety isn't always negative, and in fact, is a healthy and adaptive tool that helps us navigate life safely. Sometimes sharing this simple fact offers some reassurance.
However, when people feel that their anxiety or worry are reaching unhealthy levels - that it's impacting daily life or resulting in excessive restrictions of foods, social interactions, or achieving developmental milestones - it's useful to have resources to offer in addition to the work we do in our therapy sessions.
Below are a few newer food allergy anxiety-focused resources that may offer tangible tools to help understand and navigate allergy worries.
1. Allergic Living's "Food Allergy Anxiety Guide"
This special edition digital magazine covers a wide variety of food allergy anxiety topics. Leading food allergy clinical psychology and counseling professionals working within the food allergy community share tips via articles and even podcast conversations. Additionally, you'll read relatable stories from individuals and families managing food allergies.
2. "When Food Allergies Cause Anxiety" (Article)
Authored by Food Allergy Counselor website creator Tamara Hubbard, MA, LCPC, and published in the Fall/Winter edition of Coping with Allergies and Asthma magazine (online/print), this article offers five tips to help parents and caregivers approach food allergic kids exhibiting elevated levels of anxiety.
3. Siblings of Children with Chronic Conditions: 4 Potential Signs of Distress to Be Aware Of (Blog Post)
Written by one of the providers at Brave Minds Psychological Services, located on the Food Allergy Counselor Directory in NJ, this post explores how siblings of children with chronic conditions may be emotionally impacted.
4. Allergic Living Video Series: Managing Food Allergy Anxiety (video)
Editor Gwen Smith chats with Dr. Linda Herbert, Director of the psychosocial clinical and research program in the Division of Allergy and Immunology at Children’s National Health System in Washington, D.C about food allergy anxiety in children.
5. uh-PARENT-ly Podcast on WGN (Podcast)
Check out this interview with Gia Rosenblum, PhD, an allergy-informed psychologist in private practice in NJ (listed in the Food Allergy Counselor Directory).
6. Post-Anaphylaxis Anxiety Reminders & Tips (PDFs)
Below are two PDFs with tips to help those feeling overwhelmed after a food allergy reaction better understand how to create a plan to move forward. Both versions include the acronym T.R.A.C.E., created by Tamara Hubbard, MA, LCPC, but the second version also offers tips to further help manage stress and anxiety caused by a reaction (adapted from content put together by Jeanne Herzog, PhD)
Additionally, don't forget to check out the Food Allergy Counselor website's Resource Section, offering links to workbooks/books, articles/research and useful tools, as well as the Food Allergy Counselor blog, with posts authored by allergy-informed
clinical counseling providers.
If you're looking for an allergy-informed licensed clinical psychology/counseling provider, be sure to check out the
Food Allergy Counselor Directory to locate one near you.
*(Check back often, as these resources continue to expand!)*
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