David Russ, PhD, Licensed Practicing Psychologist

Christopher McCarthy, MEd, Licensed Professional Counselor

 

 The Turnaround Audio Program includes:

• Turnaround Program for kids (10 CDs)

• Turnaround Journal, a 74 page workbook for kids

• Chill Kit, relaxation guide for kids (1 CD)

• Parent Guide, packed full of helpful information and techniques to help parents (2 CDs)

•  Free Bonus Gift- Med FAQs- Child - An 80-minute interview with Neuropsychiatrist, Dr. James Lee. Dr. Lee is a Duke University graduate and former professor of Child Psychiatry at Duke. David Russ and Christopher McCarthy interview Dr. Lee and discuss issues related to child anxiety, including the use of medications to treat anxiety and depression in children, causal factors, types of childhood anxiety, and when to seek professional help.

Learn more about the benefits

Turnaround Helps Your Child:

Overcome their fears through scientifically researched techniques (CBT).

Feel normal as they hear other kids tell their stories of fear & freedom.

Enjoy completing the diverse exercises in the 74-page Turnaround Journal.

Calm themselves through relaxation exercises found on Chill Kit CD.

Sleep better and go to sleep faster.

Express their thoughts and feelings to you through a new shared language.

Resume normal activities, such as school, sports, & social events.

 Created by Licensed Clinicians with Over 30 Years of Combined Experience

Together, we- Psychologist Dr. David Russ and Licensed Professional Counselor Christopher McCarthy- spent two years creating this audio program just for kids. Being fathers of anxious kids, and therapists who treat anxious children, we discovered there were limited quality resources available. Turnaround: Turning Fear Into Freedom™ is based upon cognitive-behavioral therapy, which research has shown to be the most effective treatment for depression and anxiety. What makes Turnaround truly unique and without rival is the priority of making the material professional AND child friendly. In Turnaround you will have the confidence of knowing the program was developed by experienced clinicians, using scientifically proven theory and techniques, and designed to not only educate your child, but keep them engaged in the process. Your child will want to listen to it again and again.

New Article just in time for summer from Turnaround Co-Creator Christopher McCarthy! Tell Fear to Take a Hike- 5 Strategies to Help Anxious Children Embrace Summer Activities equips parents with effective strategies to help their child make the most of summertime fun.

For more articles by Dr. David Russ and Christopher McCarthy, see the Parental Support page. 

More Benefits For Children Who Struggle With Anxiety, Fear, & Worry

• We provide accurate information in a child-friendly manner. Anxiety is comprised of three components: cognitions (thoughts), body reactions (feelings), and coping behaviors. In Turnaround, each component is explained for the anxious child in easy, understandable terms- Whacky Thoughts, Yucky Feelings, & Zany Responses.
• We provide your child a recipe to follow in order to deal with their anxious symptoms. Your child need a set of instructions that offers understanding, action steps, and meaningful options for coping with anxiety.
• Turnaround provides a narrative experience that allows your child to make sense of his or her own story.
• Turnaround offers you and your child a shared vocabulary in which to express the thoughts and feelings of anxiety. In feedback, parents tell us that they love this feature!
• We provide an opportunity for your child to join a community vicariously. Anxious children feel they are alone. Providing a community helps them feel less anxious. 
• We designed Turnaround specifically for children! From the first day of script writing, we have always made it a priority to create professional AND child-friendly material. We want kids to get the best information out there and have fun at the same time. From the feedback we've received, we accomplished our goal. One parent who took her child with OCD to national specialists said they knew all the correct content and techniques, but it just didn't seem to make much difference. But she's now much improved thanks to Turnaround. There isn't any generalized anxiety and the main compulsions are almost gone. The difference was in the delivery of the information. Turnaround put CBT in a way that worked for her. She has really taken to it.

Understanding Childhood Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

Obsessive-compulsive disorder is characterized by recurrent, unwanted thoughts (obsessions) and repetitive behaviors and/or thoughts used by the child to relieve the anxious thoughts (compulsions). Obsess is from a Latin word that means to besiege a city. Obsessive thoughts really do besiege and occupy one's mind like an invading army. These thoughts are always very distressing. A child will try to suppress or ignore the thoughts without success. Performing compulsions, or "rituals" can provide temporary relief. Compulsions can be behaviors like hand washing, organizing, checking, or mental acts like ritualized praying, counting, repeating words silently. Much of it is done privately so sometimes you may not realize the extent of the OCD symptoms.

In the Parent Guide, we cover obsessive-compulsive disorder in more detail including how to recognize it. In the Turnaround program, a young man named Matt struggles with OCD. He struggles with probably the most common type of obsessive-compulsive disorder, the fear of dirt and germs. He shares his struggle with the other campers and his symptoms appears several times during the journey. Towards the end of the 10-day trip, Mario joins the group. He is a "graduate" of the program from last year's group. He shares his story of overcoming his compulsions by using the techniques taught in the program called exposure and postponing. We provide a very thorough explanation and specific steps to help kids overcome this stubborn type of anxiety. To learn more about OCD, follow this link to the article, "Understanding Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder" by Christopher McCarthy. You can find the same article on the Parental Support page titled, The ABC's of OCD.

School Phobia

Many children struggle with anxieties related to school. Common school based anxieties are Separation Anxiety, Panic/Anxiety Attacks related to school issues such as attending certain classes, eating in the cafeteria, being with feared teachers, and field trips to name a few, Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)- general worries and fears, Perfectionism related grades, projects, and homework, Social Phobia-social fears and shyness, and School Refusal. Turnaround addresses many of these fears directly. Three of the children on the imaginary trip, Madison, Cedric, and Brianna, have school based anxieties. Madison is perfectionist with school work. She's bound up in her fears of failure and getting grades less than A's. Cedric fears social situations and his shyness keeps him from experiencing the joys of friendships and, the fun of social gatherings. Brianna fears separation from her parents. She sometimes refuses school or attending athletic practices due to being separated from her mom. Through each day of the Turnaround journey, the children face their fears and learn ways to overcome them. Additionally, other child actors illustrate ways to overcome other school-based fears, including giving a speech in class. Turnaround is an excellent resource to free your child from worries and anxieties related to school.

Panic Attacks

A Personal Word From Dr. Russ

“I have a child that had panic disorder. She's free of anxiety now but I remember well what it was like when she was in the midst of panic episodes. It was terrifying for her and agonizing for her mom and I. I searched extensively for materials, books and programs that were based on research and designed to be delivered to kids directly. I was astonished by the complete absence of anything! Most of what is available is for parents who in turn are asked to essentially become the therapist for their children. Well, I am a parent and a psychologist, and that gives me a terrific advantage, but a parent really can't be a therapist. The few audio programs were lectures for at least an hour each and designed for adults. One program claiming to be a child program was patronizing and painfully boring. The format and content was contrary to both the science and practice of treating anxiety. If the delivery system is flawed then no matter how helpful the information, healing can't take place. For these reasons, for my child, for your children, Chris and I committed ourselves to create a program that works for kids, based on solid research that is age appropriate and engaging enough for them to turn fear into freedom!” Click here to learn more about Panic Attacks and how Turnaround effectively treats them.

Anxious Children From Parental Separation & Divorce

A Personal Word From Turnaround Creator, Christopher McCarthy

I am a child of divorce. My parents separated/divorced when I was six years old. I was a classic latch-key kid, coming home by myself in elementary school and being alone for a few hours until my older brother arrived. I remember well the fears I had, fears of being alone, of bad people breaking in and hurting me, of leaving my mom to visit my dad, and of worrying about my mom's safety. I wish I had had a resource like Turnaround. I think it would have helped me tremendously. In Turnaround, your child will learn why they feel what they feel, and how to master their anxious thoughts and feelings. Turnaround was created with the child of separation and divorce in mind.

On the first day of the program, your child will meet Ashley, one of the six children on this adventure trying to get free from their fears. She tells her story of how her fears started when her parents were fighting. She struggles with worries now that she never had and wishes she could just be like she use to be. There's also Brianna, who struggles with separation anxiety, and Madison who's a perfectionist. Boys will relate to either Jordan who experiences panic attacks, Cedric who is shy and fearful of social situations, or Matthew, who in his fear tries to control his chaotic world through obsessive-compulsive routines. I know what your child is feeling. I've been there and have helped many similar children in my practice as a child therapist. I'm confident Turnaround can equip them with powerful information that will build their confidence and practical techniques to help them master their fears.

 

Learn more about the creators

Illustrations by CB Canga