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World at Prayer blog
Reflections of Family and Faith
"The family that prays together stays together." - Venerable Patrick Peyton
anxiety | family prayer | pray the rosary | self-help
If you’ve ever battled anxiety, you know it can feel like your brain is hijacked — spinning with thoughts you can’t seem to stop, flooded with emotions you didn’t invite. You may even feel like your body is working against you. But in the middle of all that chaos, the Rosary offers something astonishingly gentle and effective: peace. Not just a moment of calm, but real, neurological, heart-level peace. As a Catholic therapist, I’ve had the privilege of walking with many individuals through their struggles with anxiety. I’ve seen how combining faith and neuroscience can be powerfully healing, and the Rosary is a beautiful example of this integration. Here’s why the Rosary is not only spiritually beneficial, but also scientifically helpful for calming an anxious mind.
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catholic family life | family prayer | pray the rosary
Let’s talk about something many Catholic parents face: getting your anxious teenager to pray the Rosary. If you’ve ever invited your teen to pray with you and been met with an eye roll, a sigh, or a silent stare, you’re not alone. And if you’ve felt torn between “I just want them to love the faith” and “I don’t want to push them away,” you are absolutely not alone. As both a Catholic mom and a therapist, I’ve been there. The good news? You’re not failing. You’re planting seeds. There are gentle, practical ways to invite your teen into the peace of the Rosary - without turning it into a power struggle. Here are some strategies that really work - with love, patience, and a little help from the Holy Spirit.
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catholic family life | family prayer | pray the rosary
Let’s talk about something many Catholic parents face: getting your anxious teenager to pray the Rosary. If you’ve ever invited your teen to pray with you and been met with an eye roll, a sigh, or a silent stare, you’re not alone. And if you’ve felt torn between “I just want them to love the faith” and “I don’t want to push them away,” you are absolutely not alone. As both a Catholic mom and a therapist, I’ve been there. The good news? You’re not failing. You’re planting seeds. There are gentle, practical ways to invite your teen into the peace of the Rosary - without turning it into a power struggle. Here are some strategies that really work — with love, patience, and a little help from the Holy Spirit.
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catholic family life | family prayer | pray the rosary
Whether you’ve prayed a few decades or simply held the beads on a hard day, you’ve already started retraining your mind toward peace one breath, one bead, one step at a time. Begin With Safety and Intentionality Before you even pick up your Rosary, pause. Notice your surroundings. Feel the floor under your feet, the weight of the beads in your hands. Signaling your brain: I am safe right now. Then take three deep, slow breaths - in through your nose, out through your mouth. Each exhale is an invitation for your body to release tension and your soul to receive grace.
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catholic family life | family prayer | pray the rosary
Family Rosary Time Doesn’t Have to Be Perfect to Be Powerful Let’s be honest — praying the Rosary as a family sounds beautiful in theory, but in practice? It can feel like a holy circus. The toddler’s chewing on beads, the kindergartener’s whispering “Is it almost done?” after the first decade, and your teen looking half asleep. Sound familiar? Here’s the good news: family prayer doesn’t have to be polished to be powerful.
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anxiety | power of prayer | pray the rosary
At the dawn of 2018, I experienced my first-ever panic attack. I was nineteen at the time, helping a student at my college campus writing center, when the chest-tightening, heart-pounding, head-spinning began. I felt fear seize my senses as I pushed back from the table, excusing myself to the restroom. Safely inside a stall, I fought for breath, squeezing my fingertips into my legs. What was happening? Weeks later, at my first of many counseling sessions, I realized what had overcome me: a panic attack brought on by overwhelming anxiety, and unfortunately, it wasn’t the last time I would encounter one. The harsh reality is that anxiety, panic attacks, loneliness, and many other mental crosses afflict our young people today, even those with a rooted faith in the Lord. I was no exception as I struggled with my sense of purpose and self-worth away from my family for the first time at college, struggling as a brand-new adult to discover my place in it all and come to terms with all the unknowns before me: friendships, career, vocation, hobbies, and mounting adult expectations and responsibilities. Being a young adult isn’t easy, as countless pathways call to us for attention.
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