As a therapist specializing in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), I’ve worked with many children and their parents over the years. Whether families came to me at the time of their child’s diagnosis or further along in their treatment journey, one question that kept coming up was: “What tools would you recommend to help my child understand and manage their symptoms alongside treatment?”
My answer often involved children’s books, which not only simplify mental health concepts in a way that a child can grasp, but also offer practical tips for handling day-to-day struggles. I always thought this made them a great starting point in a family’s journey toward better understanding and managing OCD.
With so many books available, it can be hard to know where to begin, so I’ve curated a list of some of my favorite books I’ve shared with children and families in therapy over the years. Having also used these books with my own children, who have all experienced varying degrees of OCD and anxiety, I’ve seen firsthand how helpful they can be.
1. Wilma Jean the Worry Machine: A Picture Book About Managing Worry and Anxiety
By Julia Cook (Author), Anita DuFalla (Illustrator)
This book, recommended for grades K-5, is one of my personal favorites that I used with my own children. It features Wilma Jean, a “worrywart” concerned about every instance of uncertainty in her day, from whether she’ll have friends to play with at recess to what her school will serve for lunch.
Even though anxiety disorders are common in children, they are often overlooked and can go untreated for long periods of time, and I thought that this book did a great job of explaining everyday worries that children may face while helping parents and children understand when extra help may be needed. It also clearly identifies which worries are within someone’s control versus which ones are not.
The story has a read-aloud video available on YouTube, which my children loved. You can also purchase an interactive activity book based on the story to work through alongside your child, which features group games, craft projects, and creative writing exercises designed to help children manage anxiety.
2. What to Do When You Worry Too Much: A Kid’s Guide to Overcoming Anxiety
By Dawn Huebner (Author), Sabine Rothmund (Illustrator)
This book is part of What-to-Guides for Kids®, a series of interactive self-help books designed to introduce 6- to 12-year-olds and their parents to the cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) techniques most often used to treat anxiety and many other mental health concerns that children can face.
One of the standout features of this book is its focus on common pitfalls parents encounter while trying to help their children. It tackles the concepts of reassurance-seeking and family accommodation (which are particularly relevant for children with OCD), explains how these behaviors can inadvertently fuel anxiety instead of alleviating it, and equips parents with tools to approach their child’s fears in a more effective way.
3. What to Do When Your Brain Gets Stuck: A Kid’s Guide to Overcoming OCD
By Dawn Huebner (Author), Bonnie Matthews (Illustrator)
This is another book from the “What-to-Do Guides for Kids” series mentioned above, however, this title is more specific to children struggling with OCD—specifically those aged 6 to 12. Written in a way that’s easy for kids to understand, this book offers helpful tools for managing the anxiety and uncertainty that often accompany OCD. It’s one of my go-to recommendations for families looking for an accessible yet impactful resource.
Through engaging activities and relatable examples, it breaks down OCD’s “sticky” thoughts and urges, empowering children and parents or caregivers to change how they view these experiences and respond to them more effectively. What makes this book particularly effective is its interactive, step-by-step approach, which encourages parents and children to work together as a team.
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4. Help Your Dragon Deal With Anxiety
By Steve Herman (Author)
“Help Your Dragon Deal With Anxiety” is an excellent resource for preschool and kindergarten-aged children, offering a gentle and thoughtful way to explore big emotions through a character outside of themselves. In the story, the dragon asks a lot of “what if” questions, mirroring the uncertainties and fears that many children experience. This approach can help children recognize their own feelings of worry and anxiety, which can often be hard for them to put into words.
While the book isn’t specifically about OCD, it introduces valuable coping skills for managing the anxiety that often accompanies fear and uncertainty—a concept that’s especially important for children navigating OCD.
As a therapist, I also appreciate that this book is part of a broader series that addresses various mental health concerns in a relatable and engaging way. Using the same characters throughout the series helps kids connect with the material more deeply, and the familiar faces can make it easier for them to stay interested.
5. Breaking Free of Child Anxiety and OCD: A Scientifically Proven Program for Parents
By Eli R. Lebowitz (Author)
It’s common for parents and caregivers of children with anxiety and OCD to feel lost and emotionally drained, especially when they’re caught between wanting to help alleviate their child’s distress and being aware that their current efforts to do so aren’t working. This book acknowledges those struggles and offers guidance on how to shift from trying to “fix” the problem of a child’s OCD or anxiety symptoms to providing support more effectively.
“Breaking Free of Child Anxiety and OCD” also tackles the dilemma that loved ones face when a child is unable or unwilling to participate in their own treatment. It focuses on parental and family responses to the behaviors of anxiety and OCD while helping the reader understand important distinctions between supporting their child and accommodating their condition.
Complete with worksheets to reinforce the techniques, this book’s practical steps can empower parents and caregivers to take an active role in how their family manages a child’s OCD or anxiety.
6. How to Parent Your Anxious Toddler
By Natasha Daniels (Author)
“How to Parent Your Anxious Toddler” features the real-life insights of Natasha Daniels, a therapist and parent of children struggling with anxiety, making it a relatable and powerful resource for anyone raising a child with anxiety or OCD. Daniels skillfully captures both the child and the parent or caregiver perspectives, helping the reader understand the “why” behind their child’s behaviors, and providing helpful tips on shifting from reacting emotionally to responding thoughtfully.
What sets this book apart is its approach to more complex behaviors often seen in children with OCD or anxiety, like skin-picking and hair-pulling. Daniels also offers strategies for navigating these challenges that focus on fostering resilience and supporting both the child with OCD or anxiety, as well as the entire family.
7. Ruby Finds a Worry
By Tom Percival (Author)
This charming story follows Ruby, a little girl who discovers a worry that starts small, but grows bigger the more she focuses on it. The book does a fantastic job of illustrating a key principle of exposure and response prevention (ERP) therapy, the gold-standard treatment for OCD: the more attention we give to our worries, the more they tend to grow.
What I love most about “Ruby Finds a Worry” is how it encourages children to express their feelings and talk openly about their worries—something that can be incredibly helpful for those with OCD. The story shows that sharing fears with others can lighten the emotional load. It’s well-suited for preschool-aged children and their parents, offering a way to start conversations about mental health early on.
8. The Invisible String
By Patrice Karst (Author), Joanne Lew-Vriethoff (Illustrator)
As a therapist, this beautifully written story is one of my favorites to share with children who have experienced trauma, loss, or grief alongside OCD and anxiety. It helps children understand that even when they are physically apart from someone they love, they are still connected by an “invisible string” of love and support. This concept is particularly helpful for children who experience separation anxiety, as it reassures them that they are never truly alone in what they’re facing.
“The Invisible String” also introduces a powerful idea about thoughts and feelings: Just because something feels real—like a worry or fear—doesn’t mean that it truly is. This can be a valuable lesson for children with OCD, who often struggle with believing their intrusive thoughts because of how real they feel to them. While recommended for preschoolers through 3rd graders, I’ve found that the book’s message also resonates with slightly older children.
9. I Am Stronger Than Anxiety
By Elizabeth Cole (Author)
“I Am Stronger Than Anxiety” is a rhyming book that helps young children recognize how anxiety can sometimes pop up at the most important moments—like when we’re excited about something new. Through colorful illustrations and relatable storytelling, the book helps children understand anxiety as a common experience and recognize the various ways it can appear in their everyday lives.
Highly recommended for preschoolers, primary school students, and even toddlers; as well as their parents, caregivers, teachers, and counselors; “I Am Stronger Than Anxiety” serves as a helpful toolkit for guiding children through these anxious feelings. It teaches kids the essential skill of standing up to their worries, even when it feels difficult, which can help grow their confidence in their ability to handle tough emotions.
10. The Way I Feel
By Janan Cain (Author, Illustrator)
This book comes highly recommended by many mental health professionals and teachers alike for its simple yet powerful message: children, like adults, experience a wide range of emotions that can often feel confusing or overwhelming.
Ideal for preschoolers but also helpful for slightly older kids who struggle to articulate their emotions, “The Way I Feel” assures kids that it’s okay to talk about not only the “good” feelings, but also the tough ones, helping them make sense of more difficult emotions like anger, fear, and sadness. Giving children the tools to express the full spectrum of what they’re feeling fosters emotional awareness, a critical skill for building resilience and empathy in everyday life.
Your family’s most helpful resource
While these books can be useful for building your child’s understanding of their emotions and mental health, the most effective tool for helping a child with OCD is evidence-based treatment—specifically exposure and response prevention (ERP) therapy. ERP helps children gradually confront the causes of their obsessions while resisting compulsive behaviors. Over time, this process can build your child’s confidence in their ability to handle discomfort and difficult emotions, taking the power away from their fears while teaching them lifelong skills for managing OCD symptoms.
At NOCD, every one of our therapists is specialty-trained to treat OCD in children, teens, and adults with ERP therapy by world-renowned experts in the field. This rigorous training ensures that our therapists truly understand OCD at all life stages from childhood through adulthood, because different age groups have different treatment needs. The effectiveness of our approach was validated in the largest peer-reviewed study of OCD treatment ever.
As a parent, learning about ERP and how it works can help you support your child in the most effective way possible. That’s why at NOCD, we also offer dozens of support groups for our members at no additional cost, including support group sessions designed for parents, caregivers, and loved ones that teach effective ways to support a child as they work to manage their symptoms.
If you’d like to learn more about working with a NOCD Therapist who can help your child take the power away from OCD, please schedule a free 15-minute call with our team. They can help answer your questions about treatment, walk you through the process of getting started, and match your child with the right specialty-trained therapist for their needs.