Episode 15: What Your Child’s Behavior Is Really Telling You — Part 2: Hard Conversations, Big Feelings & What Kids Need Most

Send us Fan MailIn Part 2 of our conversation with Kate Jennings, LPC-S, founder of The Bug and The Bee in Fort Worth, we continue exploring how anxiety shows up in kids, teens, and even parents.Kate helps us understand the physical signs of anxiety—from stomachaches and headaches to sweating, racing hearts, and sensory overwhelm—and explains why helping kids name what is happening in their bodies can reduce fear and build emotional awareness.We also talk about overscheduled kids, performance pressure, risk-aversion in teens, and how parents can guide children through hard conversations about death, divorce, scary news, illness, and grief.This episode is full of practical language, compassionate reframes, and parent-friendly tools for raising emotionally healthy, resilient kids.In This Episode, We Discuss How anxiety shows up physically in children and teens  Why stomachaches, headaches, sweating, and racing hearts may be anxiety signals  The “face the wind” sailboat analogy for anxiety  Why bravery means feeling anxious and doing the hard thing anyway  How overscheduling keeps kids from feeling and processing emotions  Why “being the best” does not always mean performing  How to talk to kids about divorce, death, illness, and scary news  Why we should use clear words like “death” and “dying” with children  How to talk about suicide with less stigma  Helping teens take healthy risks and tolerate failure  Mom mantras for hard days: “progress, not perfection,” “you can do hard things,” and “we’re doing the best we can” Key TakeawaysBehavior is communication. Anxiety often shows up in the body before kids have words for it.When we teach children to notice what is happening inside their bodies, we help them feel less afraid and more empowered.Bravery is not the absence of anxiety. Bravery is feeling anxious and doing the hard thing anyway.Hard conversations do not have to be perfect. They need to be honest, age-appropriate, and grounded in safety and connection.Call to ActionIf this episode encouraged you, share it with a parent, caregiver, teacher, or friend who loves a child or teenager.Support the show