Feature article
What to do when kids catastrophise
by Michael Grose
“If I don’t do well in this test my whole year will be messed up!”
Do you have a child who automatically assumes the worst case scenario in any risky or new
situations? If so, you have a catastrophiser on your hands.
Catastrophisers exaggerate their worries and place enormous pressure on themselves.
The default mechanism in their thinking always goes to the most negative
outcome possible. The results won’t just be bad, they’ll be catastrophic!
They won’t just mess up if they give a talk to their class at school. They’ll make total fools of
themselves and the whole class will laugh at them, or so they say.
They won’t just fall over in a game. They’ll break a leg, end up in hospital and miss out on going
to school camp, or so they say.
