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How to Support Your Child in Dealing with Anxiety and Stress: 4 Proven Techniques for Parents

Dealing with stress is very common in children nowadays. Here are 4 strategies that will help your child overcome their anxiety.
Child feeling overwhelmed and anxious: Identifying early signs of stress.

Reading helps kids enhance their vocabulary, writing skills, and critical thinking ability. It introduces them to new worlds, ideas, and views, encouraging their imagination and creativity.

As a parent, you play an important part in helping your kid overcome these obstacles and find the love of reading📖

If your child is experiencing anxiety, you are not alone. Many youngsters experience anxiety in a variety of ways, including difficulties attending school, shyness, physical symptoms such as stomach aches or migraines, and aversion to bedtime.

As a parent, seeing your child suffer may be heartbreaking, and it’s natural to want to do everything you can to help them. 

There are several enjoyable and successful techniques to assist your child increase reading comprehension and become a confident, independent reader😊

By implementing these strategies into your child’s daily routine, you can make reading an exciting and gratifying experience, preparing them for a lifetime of success and enjoyment.

This article includes practical parenting tips for anxious and stressed children, with a focus on changing your thinking and developing techniques to support your child.

Parental Influence on Children’s Anxiety

Mother and daughter share smiles, conveying a sense of mutual reassurance and support.

One of the best ways to assist your child in managing anxiety is to address your own thoughts and behaviours. 

Children seek their parents for guidance on how to deal with various situations. If you respond to their concern with fear and avoidance, kids are more likely to repeat similar behaviours. 

Instead, by showing confidence and calmness, you may reassure your child that they are safe and capable of coping with their concerns.

For example, if your child is anxious about attending preschool, expressing confidence in their capacity to cope and gently encouraging them can make a great impact. 

Say something like, “I understand you’re nervous, but I believe in you. “You’ll have a great time, and I’ll be back to pick you up soon,” demonstrates their capacity to handle the issue👍

Changing the Mindset Around Anxiety

An encouraging high-five before the school day begins—a simple gesture, but a powerful reminder that together, they can conquer any challenge that comes their way.

It’s critical to change your attitude about anxiousness. Anxiety is not a negative emotion; rather, it serves a function by alerting us to potential hazards and motivating us to act. 

It is also important to teach your child that it is normal to feel worried and that they may continue to go about their daily activities despite their anxiety.

Anxiety should be viewed as an unpleasant but manageable emotion, rather than a danger. 

Use language that normalises worry, such as “This feels challenging but we can handle it together,” rather than portraying it as something dreadful or dangerous.

This strategy assists kids in developing a healthier relationship with their emotions😄

Sensitivity is a Strength

Child visibly stressed with hand on head, conveying a moment of vulnerability.

Kids that are more sensitive and nervous often possess special abilities such as empathy, deep thinking, and attentiveness. 

Rather than viewing sensitivity as a flaw, acknowledge and cultivate these characteristics. Encourage your youngster to use their sensitivity to their advantage🥰

This positive reinforcement can help them develop self-esteem and resilience.

Historical giants such as Mahatma Gandhi and Albert Einstein were extremely sensitive people, which led to their extraordinary achievements. 

Sensitivity can lead to increased empathy and imaginative thinking, both of which are beneficial in many areas of life.

Avoiding Avoidance

Amidst busy moments, a daughter finds solace in her tears and her trusted soft toy

Ignoring anxiety-inducing events may bring temporary comfort, but it could contribute to anxiety in the long run. 

When children avoid situations that make them anxious, their world shrinks and their anxiety increases😞

Gradual exposure to these circumstances, with your aid, teaches children that they can deal with their anxieties.

For example, if your child is worried about social situations, gently urge them to engage in limited, manageable conversations.  People’s anxiety lessens as they face their fears and discover they are manageable. 

This technique, known as progressive exposure, uses the brain’s neuroplasticity to form new, positive connections with previously anxiety-inducing stimuli.

To summarise, helping your child cope with worry and stress necessitates tolerance and understanding.

You may dramatically improve your child’s anxiety management skills by adjusting your perspective, modelling good responses, and promoting progressive exposure to anxiety-inducing circumstances. 

Remember that anxiety is not a bad emotion; it is a normal aspect of life that can be managed with the correct tactics. Accept your child’s sensitivity as a strength and help them grow.

If you found these tips helpful, please share this article and check out our success stories for more expert advice on child anxiety management and parenting tips for anxious kids. 

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Resources

The latest resources direct from First Principles Education.

The latest resources direct
from First Principles Education.