Books about Parenting Children with Mental Health Struggles

Also See Books for Children and Adolescents

• Breaking Free of Child Anxiety and OCD: A Scientifically Proven Program for Parents – Eli R. Lebowitz: Based on the SPACE (Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions) program, this book provides scientifically backed methods for helping parents guide their children through anxiety and OCD without reinforcing anxious behaviors.

• Anxious Kids, Anxious Parents – Lynn Lyons and Reid Wilson: Practical, family-centered strategies to help both children and parents manage anxiety and prevent anxious habits from taking root.

• Freeing Your Child from Anxiety – Tamar Chansky: A well-regarded guide that helps parents understand anxiety in children and offers strategies to help their kids overcome fears, phobias, and worries.

• Helping Your Anxious Child: A Step-by-Step Guide for Parents – Ronald M. Rapee, Ann Wignall, Susan Spence, Vanessa Cobham, and Heidi Lyneham: A clear, step-by-step approach for helping parents recognize the signs of anxiety and work with their children to reduce it.

• The Whole-Brain Child - Daniel J. Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson: While this book addresses a broader range of childhood emotional challenges, it provides parents with a deep understanding of how the child's brain works, helping them support kids in managing anxiety and stress.

• Parenting a Child Who Has Intense Emotions – Pat Harvey and Jeanine Penzo: Techniques for parents to help children who experience intense emotions such as anxiety, fear, and depression.

• What to Do When You Worry Too Much: A Kid's Guide to Overcoming Anxiety – Dawn Huebner: Interactive self-help book for children, with parent guidance, helps kids develop coping strategies for managing anxiety.

• The Opposite of Worry: The Playful Parenting Approach to Childhood Anxieties and Fears – Lawrence J. Cohen: A playful and creative approach for parents to help their children overcome worries and anxiety by using play as a tool for emotional regulation.

• Childhood Depression: A Parent’s Guide to Helping Your Child – Gillian Butler and Freda McManus: Helps parents identify the signs of depression in children and offers practical advice on supporting them through it.

• The Childhood Depression Sourcebook – Jeffrey A. Miller: A comprehensive guide for parents on childhood depression, its causes, symptoms, and treatments.

• The Out-of-Sync Child – Carol Stock Kranowitz: While not exclusively about anxiety or depression, this book helps parents understand sensory processing disorder, which is often linked with anxiety and emotional regulation issues in children.

• When Your Child is Depressed: Solutions for Parents – David Fassler and Lynne Dumas: A comprehensive guide that explains how to recognize the signs of depression in children and provides practical advice on seeking treatment and helping children cope.

• Raising a Moody Child: How to Cope with Depression and Bipolar Disorder – Mary A. Fristad and Jill S. Goldberg Arnold: A valuable resource for parents dealing with children who experience mood swings, depression, or bipolar disorder.

• Understanding Your Child's Puzzling Emotions – Sam Goldstein and Robert Brooks: A guide to understanding various emotional challenges children face, including depression, and providing tools to help support emotional well-being.

• Freeing Your Child from Negative Thinking – Tamar Chansky: Although primarily focused on negative thought patterns, this book offers strategies that can help children with depression develop more positive thinking habits and shift away from self-defeating thoughts.

• Parenting a Depressed Child: How to Handle the Big Issues with a Small Child – Deborah Serani: Written by a psychologist who has personally experienced depression, this book offers an empathetic perspective and provides evidence-based strategies for helping children with depression.