Anne Marie Guanci - David and the Worry Beast: Helping Children Cope with Anxiety

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Table of Contents

Dedication

For Jackie, Valerie and David, the loves of my life. And for Sister Marie, my angel.

Twenty seconds left in the basketball game... David had the ball. He wanted to pass it so badly. He looked to the left, and then to the right. No one was clear...

Its all up to me, he murmered. I have to try. He threw the basketball at the hoop as hard as he could. Oh please go in, please, please, he said softly.

He could feel his heart pounding. The next few seconds felt like hours. As the buzzer sounded, the ball bounced off the rim, missing the net entirely. Davids team lost the game.

His teammates groaned loudly. The other team cheered wildly. David felt terrible. Some of the kids shook their heads disgustedly at him. Some just didnt look at him at all.

His friend John said, Tough luck, David.

In the locker room, after the game, Coach Smith said, You all played very well. I am proud of all of you. The next game will be for the championship. I know we can win. On the way out, the coach patted David on the back. He smiled at him and said, Good try, Dave.

David looked down at his feet and sighed, We lost because of me.

David, the coach replied, Its not if you win or lose. The important thing is how you play the game.

You are just being nice, David said.

As David changed clothes he felt worse and worse. Putting his sneakers in his gym bag, he spied a small furry creature resting on top of his towel.

What is that? David said to himself. It must be one of my sisters stuffed animals. The creature widened his eyes and shook its head. Feeling afraid, David quickly zipped his gym bag closed and left.

David wanted to go home as fast as he could.

At dinner, Davids mom and dad each gave him a hug.

You played a great game. Dont worry about missing that basket, his mom said.

David couldnt stop worrying. He had disappointed his whole team.

I really messed up. The whole team was counting on me, he said. I let them down. I dont want to play anymore...

Davids parents tried to comfort him. Their kind words didnt make David feel any better, though.

Later, in his room, David lay in bed, unable to sleep. Suddenly, his gym bag fell off his desk. David jumped up and ran over to it. As he picked it up, he noticed the seams were bulging! Bits of fur popped through the zipper!

David opened the bag.

Out came the furry creature, at least twenty times larger than before.

Im your Worry Beast. Im here so you will worry more and more, the creature said in a scary voice.

You cant stay here, said David. Youll have to get in the closet.

The Worry Beast slinked away to the closet. When David finally fell asleep, he had horrible dreams. He kept seeing the Worry Beast growing larger and larger.

Davids alarm clock rang early the next morning. He pulled on his clothes and went to breakfast. His mom had brought him his favorite cereal, Frosty Crunch, and even made him hot cocoa. David wasnt hungry.

David sat quietly and stared out the window as his mom drove him to school. He just wanted to forget about the stupid basketball game. Finally he said, Do I have to play basketball? I dont really want to be on the team anymore, Mom.

You have always loved basketball, David. Why dont we talk about it later? answered his mom.

David slowly walked into school feeling miserable. He liked his teacher, Miss Kelly, but he hadnt slept well, so he felt tired.

Johnny, his best friend, sat down next to him. Maybe hed ask Johnny to come over his house to play. We can play outside and leave the stupid Worry Beast in the closet, thought David.

Suddenly, Miss Kelly announced, There will be a math test tomorrow. You all need to study hard.

Math test? muttered David. Im not good at math.

David forgot all about asking Johnny over to play. Now he was even more worried than before.

He went back to class where Miss Kelly began to talk about multiplication and division. It was hard, really hard to understand. David was afraid to ask questions when he didnt understand something. The other kids will think Im dumb, he thought.

What if I fail the math test? What if my team loses again because of me? he softly cried.

David was so worried, his stomach ached. He felt like crying.

David raised his hand. I feel sick. I want to go home, he said.

Then David, you will need to go to the nurses office, Miss Kelly said.

What seems to be the problem, David? asked Nurse Mary when she saw him.

David clutched at his stomach. I feel like I want to throw up. I want to go home, said David.

Upset belly, huh? asked Nurse Mary. She popped a thermometer in his mouth. When it beeped, Nurse Mary took it out, looked at the reading, and said, Hmm...No fever, but something is wrong for sure. Is something worrying you, David? Sometimes kids feel ill if they have big worries on their minds.

David still was silent. He didnt want to look at Nurse Mary for fear she would see he was terribly worried. He didnt want to talk about it. He only wanted the worry to go away.

Its true, Nurse Mary continued, I have seen worries grow so big that they take right over. Are you worried about something, David?

David shook his head and asked, May I go home now?

Wait here, Ill call your mom, Nurse Mary replied.

Nurse Mary called Davids mom and asked her to come to the school to pick up David. She also asked Davids mom to check in with Miss Vivian, the school psychologist, before taking David home.

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