To make sure that your child never feels alone.

by Rachel Linder

Many children experience normal levels of anxiety, which can vary based on age, but can be seen through fears of the dark, loud noises, monsters, and other things. Others may find their anxiety to be more crippling—look for signs like frequent worrying or limiting activities. If you find that your child is feeling more severe anxiety, talk to your pediatrician. One way to begin to teach your child about their own worries, as well as to give them insight on the feelings of others, is through books.

Growing up with anxiety it can be easy to feel like you’re all alone—especially when you’re reading books without characters expressing the feelings that you are experiencing. Given the fact that as an adult, anxiety can make you feel completely isolated in your challenges, imagine how difficult it must be as a child with anxiety. Ruby Finds a Worry is a children’s book by Tom Percival that follows a young girl with a worry that will not go away.

Written for children ages three to six, this book follows a happy and imaginative girl named Ruby. Unexpectedly, she comes across a worry that is visually represented in the book, so that young children can understand the feeling better. Though it starts off as a small worry, it continues to grow and grow as the book goes on. It gets to a point where the worry is all Ruby can think about—and she is fully consumed by it. It isn’t until Ruby meets a young boy that she learns that everyone has their own worries, but talking about them can help them go away.

Not only does this children’s book introduce feelings of anxiety to children, but it offers suggestions when it comes to ways to cope. Whether your child is experiencing normal levels of fear or anxiety, they have a diagnosed problem—or you’re simply looking to teach your child about the feelings of others, this book is a must. This book is also a great way to start a dialogue with your child about their feelings through emphasizing the importance of sharing hidden anxieties, as Ruby does.

This book is part of a picture book series by Percival called Big Bright Feelings, all of which allow for the start of a conversation with young ones surrounding emotional intelligence topics. The other books in the series are Perfectly Norman, Ravi’s Roar, Tilda Tries Again and Meesha Makes Friends. All of these books tap into mental and emotional health, positive self-image, managing feelings, and building self-confidence—all topics that can be difficult, but are essential to teach our children. There is no question that these Big Bright Feelings books, and especially Ruby Finds a Worry can help start the ongoing conversations that may be challenging to begin.