All articles

School Avoidance Expert Dr. Albano: How To Help Your Child's Anxiety

January 29, 2022 2 min read
School Avoidance Expert Dr. Albano: How To Help Your Child's Anxiety

School avoidance families will find value as Dr. Albano addresses escape as avoidance and how natural parent instincts lead to accommodations that enable our kid's avoidance. Her guidance and insight are helpful for us to understand so we can work on correcting this pattern.

From TEDMED 2020: Treating youth anxiety with Dr. Anne Marie Albano - YouTube

Tap to unmute

From TEDMED 2020: Treating youth anxiety with Dr. Anne Marie Albano MDedge: news and insights for busy physicians

MDedge: news and insights for busy physicians19.8K subscribers

Watch on

In this Psychcast interview from 2020, Dr. Albano discusses treating kids with anxiety disorders.

MDedge is for physicians, and health care professionals providing medical news trusted and credible sources. Dr. Lorenzo Norris, MD, is the host of the MDedge Psychcast, editor in chief of MDedge Psychiatry, and assistant professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at George Washington University,

Dr. Albano’s interview starts around the 7-minute mark and ends at 30 minutes.

School avoidance families will find value as Dr. Albano addresses escape as avoidance and how natural parent instincts lead to accommodations that enable our kid’s avoidance. Her guidance and insight are helpful for us to understand so we can work on correcting this pattern.

The doctor highlights the value of exposure and comments on SSRI Antidepressants.

Being a former member of the school avoidance parent club, I see how this truth can sting for a couple of reasons.

  1. In theory, this makes total sense, but in reality, it feels callously tough to counter when you have a screaming, crying kid hiding under their covers.
  1. It can make you feel like a lousy parent hearing what you should have done.

But, Dr. Albano says that not giving into accommodations goes against our parental instincts. It is human nature to soothe our kids and feel pained watching them feel pain. So, as a parent, you are not a fault!

She reiterates this around the 27-minute mark when Dr. Norris asks Dr. Albano what advice she would give to mental health providers helping families with their kid’s anxiety disorders.

‘Parents, You’re not doing anything wrong, and it’s not your fault. Your kid is not broken. These are normal emotions and instincts that have run a bit into high gear.

Need support?

Find the guidance that fits your role

Keep reading

School-Based Intervention Teams, School Avoidance, School Refusal, and Truancy
Truancy & Law
January 7, 2026

By Jayne Demsky

School-Based Intervention Teams, School Avoidance, School Refusal, and Truancy

When a child begins missing school consistently, families often hear a mix of terms—school avoidance, school refusal, and truancy. These words are sometimes used interchangeably, yet they describe very different realities. Understanding these distinctions is essential, not only for parents, but for schools tasked with responding appropriately.

Read article
More Than a Tardy Slip: Georgia’s SB 123 Marks a Turning Point in School Attendance and Why School Avoidance Training Is the Missing Link
Truancy & Law
October 23, 2025

By Jayne Demsky

More Than a Tardy Slip: Georgia’s SB 123 Marks a Turning Point in School Attendance and Why School Avoidance Training Is the Missing Link

Georgia's new attendance law, SB 123, is here, and it's a major shift. No longer can schools expel students solely for absenteeism. Instead, the law, effective July 1, 2025, mandates a deeper look at the root causes of why students are missing school. This article explores why SB 123 is a critical opportunity, not a compliance burden. It's a chance to move from punishment to empathy. But to succeed, schools must address one critical, often-overlooked piece of the puzzle: "school avoidance." Disc

Read article
Navigating Texas Attendance Laws for Students with Disabilities and Health Needs
Truancy & Law
June 4, 2025

By Daniel Levi

Navigating Texas Attendance Laws for Students with Disabilities and Health Needs

For Texas families of children with disabilities or chronic health needs, frequent school absences are often unavoidable. However, Texas law has strict rules about attendance, including the 90% attendance rule and truancy laws that may impact class credit and graduation. This guide explains those rules in depth and offers practical strategies for staying in compliance, protecting your child’s rights, and building strong partnerships with your child’s school.

Read article