Using creativity as a coping mechanism

I try not to impose my own ideas on what the Scrapbooks should become, because ultimately I'd like them to be a memento that Josie and Lori created themselves, and have meaning for them. Often, they do something completely different from what I would ever have suggested, and it reflects their different personalities, current obsessions, and anxieties.

For example, whenever they go to the dentist, they get a couple of stickers. I thought that they might use them to decorate other pages, or perhaps make a dentist visit page. Josie proposed something different, which reflects her personal feelings about the dentist: a Bravery page. She's always felt a lot of anxiety about the dentist, although she's never had any particularly bad experiences, except in the worrying recesses of her anxious mind. So, it was good to see her coming up with an idea that I hoped she could use as a coping mechanism.

Here's the result:

This page makes me proud, because every time she goes to the dentist she struggles with palpable anxiety and panic, and with an effort of will, and some support from me, she forces it under control.

As her page says: Dentist Stickers. Brave! And she is.