🦜 🦔 🦎

Brave Steps

Specific Challenges · Fears & Phobias · Go at your pace

Understand fear kindly and shrink it one small, brave step at a time — with your safe people beside you.

My name: Date:

Fear Is Trying to Help

Fear is your brain's alarm system trying to keep you safe. Sometimes the alarm goes off when there isn't real danger — that's a phobia. It doesn't mean anything is wrong with you, and it's very common. Fears can shrink when we face them slowly, gently and with support. You never have to rush. 🌱

My fear is:

What Happens in My Body

🦜 Rosie: "Naming body signals makes them less scary." When I feel the fear, I notice:

💓 Fast heartbeat 🫁 Quick breathing 🥵 Hot or shaky 🌀 Tummy flip

These feelings are uncomfortable but not dangerous — they always pass. My reminder:

My Fear Ladder

🦔 Gary: "Start at the bottom — the easiest step. Only climb when a step feels okay." Write your steps from easiest to hardest.

My Calm Tools

🦎 Elvis: Bring these on each brave step.

Slow breathing: in · out

5-4-3-2-1 grounding — one thing I can see:

My safe person on brave steps:

Brave Self-Talk

🦜 Rosie: Choose or write a brave phrase.

After a brave step, I'll celebrate by:

💛 For grown-ups: If a fear is stopping everyday life (school, sleep, friendships) or causing a lot of distress, speak to your GP — specific phobias respond very well to gentle, evidence-based therapy such as graded exposure/CBT. Never force a child into a feared situation; support and pace matter.

🏅

Brave Steps Certificate

So brave, !

You understood your fear, named body signals, built a fear ladder, packed calm tools and practised brave self-talk. 💚

Signed by Rosie 🦜, Gary 🦔 and Elvis 🦎 · Date: