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Little Parachutes Gold Star Winner
Categories: Anxiety, Courage, Feelings, Resilience / adaptability

The Worrysaurus

There are a lot of helpful messages in this picture book for a child experiencing anxiety. The Worrysaurus is full of fears and 'What If's', but he learns some useful ways to cope with challenging emotions and is able to get on with his day. A useful and entertaining way to introduce the concept of mindfulness to young children.
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The Worrysaurus

Author: Rachel Bright
Illustrator: Chris Chatterton
Publisher: Orchard Books

“…and with those little wordlings, he calmed his busy brain, since when the sun is shining, why worry it will rain?”

Rachel Bright’s endearing little Worrysaurus is a dinosaur who likes to have a plan. He’s dreamed up and prepared for the perfect day: a walk in the sun with a delicious picnic. But soon he starts to dwell on all the things that might go wrong (not enough food and drink, getting lost or hurting himself) and these thoughts are enough to transport him from the happy present to worrying about a calamity-filled future. A lizard with a tendency to panic about the weather shows up (we like to think this choice of character was a nod to the ‘reptilian brain’ theory) and works up poor Worrysaurus into even more of a state. But then he realises that he can cope: he imagines his Mummy and remembers her wise and soothing words; he gets out his special tin filled with ‘happy things’; he uses positive affirmations and he frees the ‘worry butterfly’ which has taken residence in his tummy. The day goes well after all, and the new friends are able to laugh at their troubles rather than brood on their errors of judgement.

We are huge fans of Rachel Bright at Little Parachutes, and ‘Worrysaurus’ has become a firm favourite in our library for its strong child-appeal and useful, non-preachy messages. Brought to life visually by the brilliant illustrator Chris Chatterton, you won’t regret sharing this with any young child who feels the magnetic pull of the ‘what if’ worry.

This video link is provided to help an adult assess the book's suitability for a child's situation before purchasing it. It has been filmed by a third party and hosted on YouTube and is not made by Little Parachutes. More info

The messages we found in this book:

Acknowledgement:

  • Like many children, Worrysaurus feels more anxious in situations that he can’t fully control. Having a plan keeps him calm at first, but when he starts to think about all the things that MIGHT go wrong, his mood changes from buoyant to deflated.
  • It’s easy to ‘overthink’, and dwell on either past or future events rather than stay focussed on the present. Worrysaurus becomes so preoccupied about the ‘what if’s’ that he forgets that everything is currently going  just fine: the sun is shining, but he’s fretting about rain.
  • Anxiety can be infectious. When the lizard starts panicking about a potential storm, Worrysaurus absorbs this and feels even worse, even though his logical brain tries to remind him that a storm is unlikely on such a hot, dry day.
  • Children are very influenced by the thoughts, feelings and opinions of their peers.
  • It is common for children to feel anxiety in their tummies. In the story, this is described as a ‘worry butterfly’. Worrysaurus is encouraged to ‘free the butterfly’ which may be a useful metaphor to share with a child.

Guidance:

  • Worries tend to hang out in the past or the future, and if we focus on what’s happening right now then we’re likely to feel less anxious.
  • Worrysaurus has some useful coping mechanisms: he uses visualisation (he thinks about his mum), he has a special box with happy things, he uses positive affirmations, he distracts himself with laughter and fun.
  • “If it’s not a happy ending then it hasn’t ended yet”. This lovely phrase, provided by Worrysaurus’ mum, is another way of saying ‘this too will pass’.  Any challenging situation will eventually come to an end, and it’s futile worrying about things you can’t control.
  • There’s no need to run away from/avoid challenging situations. You can cope with them and they will pass.

Hope & Inspiration:

  • Worrysaurus was able to help himself by using lots of techniques to control his anxiety.
  • None of the things that he worried about came to pass. He had a fun-filled day with his new friend.
Review by: Claire Ward-Dutton

Categories: Anxiety, Courage, Feelings, Resilience / adaptability



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What is a Parachute Book?

A challenging experience can make a young child feel as if they are in emotional free fall. As a parent, you can’t stop them falling, but you can offer them a softer landing:
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The information provided on the Little Parachutes website is not a substitute for professional care by a qualified practitioner, and is not intended to provide medical advice. If you are concerned about the health and wellbeing of yourself or children in your care, you should always consult an appropriate healthcare professional.