Teenage anxiety so bad it can kill, and how to avoid it, with Lorena Salazar - a podcast by Helen Wills

In this episode Helen Wills and Lorena Salazar talk about how stress can affect teenagers, the long-term implications of unmanaged worry, and how to support a teenager with anxiety.

When Lorena was 14 she was diagnosed with gastritis, caused by stress. Eventually she was told she had a gastric ulcer, and by the time she was in college her anxiety was so bad it had affected her immune system, and infection had taken hold. Lorena almost died.

I'm Helen Wills, and each week I talk to someone who went through a difficult time in their teenage years, but came through it in a good place. My guests offer insight and tips for parents of teens who might be going through similar, and hope for young people who need a light shining at the end of the tunnel.

How anxiety begins in children:

Worry is normal, but when it becomes long-term it can start to wear down a child's defences. Lorena talks about how her parents' separation and a move to a new school started with small worries, and progressed to physical symptoms of anxiety.

Lots of teens suffer heightened anxiety around friendship issues, especially when they try to fit in with a popular group of peers. Lorena gives great self-confidence tips for teens on living according to your own needs rather than living up to the expectations of others.

How to support a teenager with depression or anxiety:

Lorena talks about

• how parents might struggle to help teens who don't think their parents really get it
• how keeping consistent with offers of support pays off eventually
• how teens need to feel ready to seek help before it will work for them.

Eventually Lorena was able to see that there was a positive way out of her anxiety, and used therapy to recover and manage her feelings.

There's also good advice for adults on how to avoid the competitive culture we live in that values productivity over wellness.

Who is Lorena Salazar?

Lorena Salazar is a wellness coach from Massachusetts, where she lives with her husband and two children. She is on a mission to help 1 million women with anxiety reclaim their power, feel confident and live joyful lives.

In April 2021 Lorena is relaunching her free wellness accountability group for moms/mums. She says it's perfect for those who want to stay on track with their wellness goals and benefit from checking in with a group of like minded people.

More teenage parenting tips from Helen Wills:

There are lots more episodes of the Teenage Kicks podcast. You can email me on teenagekickspodcast@gmail.com. I’ve also got some posts on the blog that might help parents with other teenage parenting dilemmas, so do pop over to Actually Mummy if you fancy a read.

Thank you so much for listening! Subscribe now to the Teenage Kicks podcast to hear all my new episodes. I'll be talking to some fabulous guests about difficult things that happened to them as teenagers - including losing a parent, becoming a young carer, and being hospitalised with mental health problems - and how they overcame things to move on with their lives.

You can also find more from Helen Wills on parenting teenagers on Instagram and Twitter @iamhelenwills.

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Please note that Helen Wills is not a medical expert, and nothing in the podcast should be taken as medical advice. If you're worried about a teenager, please seek support from a medical professional.

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