It’s very easy to lose our patience with children who are displaying anxious behaviour. As back to school time nears, your kids might start to show signs of anxiety, become teary,or experience disrupted sleep. Unsurprisingly, a parent’s reaction can make a difference to how quickly their child calms down and regulates themselves. Here are some strategies to help your child with back to school anxiety:
1 Be prepared
Talk about some good ways to reduce anxious feelings when your child is not feeling anxious. In the heat of the moment, they will not be able to reason or make good decisions. If some tools are in the tool box, ready to go, you’ll be able to remind them and then support them as they implement familiar strategies.
2 Use breathing exercises
There are lots of different types of breathing exercises from blowing bubbles to rainbow breathing. Know a few different types, practice them when both your child and yourself are feeling good. Then, do them together when anxiety strikes.
3 Touch
Ask for consent before you do this one as some kids react badly to touch when they are feeling anxious. If they are OK with it, hold your child’s hand, touch their arm or make some other kind of gentle physical contact so that they know you are present and ready to help.
4 Use a soothing tone of voice
If you can stay in control yourself and guide your child through an anxious time, they will feel safer. An angry, accusatory tone might make your child feel ashamed and elevate their response. Combined with the previous ideas, a non-judgemental, calm response from you will decrease your child’s panic. A calm conversation about their worries will help to explore what the real fear is and open the way to some strategies to help.
5 Anxiety is exhausting
Let your child rest after they’ve felt anxious. The physical response to perceived threat puts stress on the body’s systems, so a rest is needed to recover well.
If anxiety is becoming a regular part of your child’s life, they might need some help to identify what is causing it and how to read the signs of an anxious response. There are lots of children’s picture books on the topic, Headspace and Beyond Blue have good resources, or you might like them to see a counsellor in person. Child-friendly education and strategies can make a real difference for your whole family in managing anxiety.
