You’re tired, frustrated and just need to lay down and take a nap and it's only 11am in the morning! Is this from lack of sleep? Too much to drink the night before? No! You just came back from an appointment at the pediatrician where your child clung to you nervously,...

Helping a child control their breathing when they are in a potentially stressful situation can be extremely helpful. Adding these visual aids are a wonderful way to help children focus on their breathing in the moment. Coping Skills For Kids has great printouts on thei...

Using a position of comfort can dramatically decrease stress for a child undergoing a procedure. This video is a great example of how these positions can be utilized to help a child, and parent, through a potentially painful and scary event.

Knowing how a child may react to a medical encounter can help make it a less stressful experience. Below is some helpful information and how you can support your child depending on their age.

I am an INFANT

My caregiver makes me feel safe and I don’t like separation

Rocki...

There is nothing like the great feeling you get when you realize that you have found the perfect tool for your child life toolkit and I’m sure many of you know that feeling I am talking about. It’s like a eureka moment when you ask, “Where have you been all my (child l...

There is much positive press on the beneficial effects that reading to children can have on language development, cognition and social-emotional development. I have posted articles before on this blog regarding the use of bibliotherapy in helping children express their...

I have been thinking a lot recently about how we foster connections as child life specialists. Most recently I have been working with a young girl in the hospital who I will call Anna. Anna was not from the United States and her family was not able to be present at the...

In the new movie Inside Out, Sadness is a problem. She is the opposite of Joy. She is the one no one wants to be around, the one who isn't allowed to touch memories for fear of destroying the happiness surrounding them. At one point she is delegated to standing in a ci...

Approximately 30,000 children and adults in the US have cystic fibrosis and about 1,000 new cases are diagnosed each year. In people with CF, a defective gene and its protein product cause the body to produce unusually thick, sticky mucus that clogs the lungs and leads...

Families in challenging socioeconomic situations face many barriers to adequate healthcare. According to the APA, children and teens living in poorer communities are at increased risk for a wide range of physical health problems including but not limited to chronic con...