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Sam Campbell Jones

Meet the Practioner
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Working with pupils that need the support is very important to me as an educator and guide.

What is the age range you work with?

Just like adults children with anxiety tend to worry more, these feelings can become very overwhelming for a child. Depending on the age of the children and the experiences they have had these worries can be extreme and generally out of their control.

All children benefit from a routine and this is very true of an anxious child, when this changes last minute without warning or discussion the child may react badly. This could show itself in many different ways including anger, panic, fear or sickness.

It is very important for a child to feel like they belong and also have good make good friendships and connections, this can be particularly difficult for a child with anxiety issues. It may not come naturally to them to start up conversations and or deal with social environments in and out of school. If they do not have the right tools to hand when they are young / primary school age this could only get worse in secondary school where generally speaking the class sizes / and year groups are bigger.

What areas of emotional wellbeing do you most connect with and are passionate about supporting?

We know what it’s like for adults who are constantly worrying about things in our daily lives we will find it hard to switch off, sleep or wake up in the night this is the same for children. The problem is when children are tired or unable to relax these issues can feel one hundred times worse. It is important again for a child that suffers from anxiety to find ways to help them get a good night’s sleep and relax.

“Your first blog posts won’t be perfect, but you just have to do it. You have to start somewhere. Think in small, incremental steps that build momentum.”

How has COVID impacted the mental wellbeing of the families in these areas?

The Covid pandemic has increased anxiety and isolation for so many families and communities. Many adults and children who feel that they can usually cope, are struggling. It may be you as you read this – you need to know that it’s okay and there is help out there so that you can survive what you are going through.

Whilst using Drawing and Talking, what is your greatest success story?

My greatest success was with a 10 year old boy who was a selective mute. He had been coming into school and hiding from everyone – and I don’t mean hiding physically. He was hiding mentally and not attaching or connecting to anyone. He began Drawing and Talking with me and would hardly look at me to begin with. Gradually he started to draw and moved his chair closer to me. Then he started to point at his drawing when I asked him about it. By the end of the 12 sessions, his chair was pushed up as close to me as possible and I couldn’t stop him from talking! This has even translated into the classroom and at home where he was far more engaged and happy.