I really need to help ds with anxiety and don't know where to start.

[Oversizedaubergine]

My son 7 has celiac, over sensitivity, lactose intolerance, and is also sensitive to various artificial sweeteners and preservatives.It has taken three years to get him on a reasonably even keel where his gastro symptoms and migraine are concerned.Now his main problem is that he can't cope with groups of people.He says they make him angry and they breathe all the air leaving hardly any for him.When he feels this way he will readily run off or hide or shout for mum or home.He gets very physically distressed and takes a while to calm down.He loves sport but group coaching sessions are unpredictable and He is beginning to feel he is just too different to join in.I would love to be able to help him but I really am no expert.He is home schooled as he couldn't cope with the school environment.Any advice would be appreciated.

Hi not sure if I'm best placed to help but is he under paediatrics? Have you tried camhs? I hear mixed things about them so not sure realistically how good they are.

How about ot? They have been good with my sons sensory issues

Thanks for the reply! He sees someone for coeliac, he has been referred for possible aspergers, but not priority because he doesnt break things or hurt people.
I have read about camhs here on mumsnet but I don't know what it is or how to access help.
His sensory problems weren't diagnosed through nhs so I guess we won't get ot either.
Maybe my never ending patience with him is the problem, I should just let him get totally wound up and see what happens, maybe I'd get some proper help them!

Can your dc be referred to counselling by your peadiatrician!

I'm in London and my dd has for hypermobility syndrome. She's very sensitive and shy and rarely will complain when she need to about pain. She's been referred to counselling by the local tier 2 children's mental health service which does sleeping issues, bereavement etc etc.

Sorry, that may not have made sense. The counselling is to help her with issues surrounding her constant pain and how she can manage it and other issues that she has - the senetivitity and shyness.

My DD is coeliac and also suspected aspergers but its my son who has high anxiety and is also homeschooled (has diagnosis of autism). We're actually off to a CAHMS workshop this week- met with the family worker who saud all the strategies we have used/ do use are what they do anyway.
At the moment we are just doing good old deep breathing which seems to be working the best-must remember to practise when calm.
Other strategies we have used-
Theraputty
5 point scale
Blue book of calm (we made this as he likes all blue things)
Throwing/punching pillows
Squeezing/hugging
Listening to relax kids cd.
A lot if the above had the opposite effects, others worked for a while but with the breathing we can do anywhere and I can do with him and he is trying sooo hard. It does take practise.
Obviously I try to reduce the triggers in the first place by remaining calm myself ( doesnt always work but if he can try then so can I) and talking things through calmly and slowly. Just talking more slowly can have a massive effect.

Go to GP for referral to CAHMS.

Thanks, it is useful to know breathing techniques work for your son. I have found that since being homeschooled my ds has a much lower general level of anxiety, but it can build up incredibly quickly in certain situations.
I will speak to my gp again to see if we can get referred to cahms, since we normally wait 3 weeks to see gp, I guess this won't be any time soon.
I really thought once I got his diet right he would be ok.
I agree that reducing triggers works well, maybe it is expecting too much from him to spend an hour without me doing a sport he loves.

The most effective paced breathing to reduce anxiety is 7-11. See how his normal breath is paced, then have a normal breath in as a count of seven, then breathe out normally to a count of eleven, it takes time to practise to get it right but it empties the lungs of stale carbon dioxide and allows more oxygen in, never a bed thing

Soon you'll be saying IN seven, OUT eleven and you'll both see the effects pretty quickly. There are loads of tutorials for it on youtube.