Joanna Fortune: My daughter feels jealous of her friend's friendship with another girl 

I would urge you not to dismiss or minimise your daughter’s emotional response, writes child psychotherapist Dr Joanna Fortune 

Your daughter is aware that her best friend is forming a strong connection with someone else she sees a lot outside of school. File picture: iStock 

My daughter has just turned nine. She attends a country school with just a dozen in her class. This year, the girls are in smaller groups, and my daughter seems to have struggled with this change. Her ‘best friend’ has started spending a lot of time with a girl from another class outside of school because they live close to each other. My daughter is not being excluded in any way but is extremely jealous of their friendship. I’ve tried explaining that it’s OK to have lots of different friends but she’s very upset and dislikes going to school now. How can I help her cope with her jealousy?

I feel empathy for your daughter because a lot is changing around her right now. She has no control over what is happening, and that is very difficult to deal with.