I came across an incredible children’s book called, What Do You Do With A Problem. I found it to be one of the best explanations of the existential approach to problems in life. The story touches on some existential themes such as anxiety, depression, isolation, freedom, and responsibility.
For the existentialist, life is no picnic and is full of problems. When dealing with the vicissitudes of life, we can ignore our problems, medicalized them, or hope they go away; or we can take a different approach. We can listen to our feelings and ask what our feelings are telling us about ourselves and our problems. We can push life problems away or use our problems as an opportunity to learn something about ourselves. By taking responsibility for our problems in living, we can often find greater freedom and perhaps even learn something along the way.
Aaron Olson 