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As kids become older, anxiety during their childhood days might get worse. If anxiety is not addressed and managed well, it can harm one’s mental health and emotional well-being. Guardians play a crucial role in assisting kids who are experiencing anxiety problems. Preventing a child’s fear is one of the most important things guardians can do to help.
Do you have a child with anxiety? Here are nine strategies that may greatly help you in preventing child anxiety.
1. Recognize the Child’s Emotion
Sometimes, it can be tempting to say stuff like, “Oh, it is nothing,” or “Don’t stress yourself about it,” when your kid expresses concern over something. These kinds of comments imply that your child’s emotions are incorrect and assure them everything will be well.
Saying something like, “it seems like you are feeling frightened right now,” will help to affirm their emotions. Then, convey your confidence in their anxiety. Say something like, “It is indeed hard to do frightening things like this, but I am sure you could accomplish this.”
2. Encourage Your Kid to be in Charge
Consider what you can accomplish to provide your child a sense of authority over frightening circumstances they may experience. For instance, if your child experiences anxiety about strangers, assign them the responsibility of closing and securing their bedroom window every evening before sleep.
Express to your kid your appreciation for the effort it requires to manage anxiety to achieve what they desire or require. They are firmly urged to participate in reality and allow their anxiousness to develop over time. As long as the child stays in touch with stressful situations, their anxiety will slowly reduce.
3. Don’t Ignore the Things That Trigger Them
Children with anxiety will feel better if you assist them in ignoring the stuff they are scared of. However, it will just worsen their fear in the long run.
For example, a child encounters discomfort and begins to weep, not out of malice, but rather because that is how they feel. A kid learns a coping technique when guardians take them away or remove the object from their sight. Also, tolerating them leads to a chance that the cycle will continue.
4. Talk About Their Negative Thinking
Your child is vulnerable to negative thoughts, just like grownups. These negative thoughts can make them anxious and lower their self-esteem. Because of this, you should educate them on how to recognize their anxious feelings, challenge them, and transform them into realistically optimistic ones by employing healthy self-talk.
They must be able to recognize negative thoughts before they can combat anxiety. Assist them in compiling a list of their most frequent negative ideas.
Next, help your kid develop the skills of gathering information to evaluate the facts supporting their fearful beliefs. Asking themselves, “Is it real? Am I dumb or ignorant? Are there any instances when I have proven that I am intelligent?” If this kind of idea comes to their mind, remind them that they shouldn’t easily believe such thoughts.
The last phase is to switch out their negative thinking for a positive one after they have learned to notice and confront it. Don’t hurry to tell them they are not foolish since they won’t acknowledge you and don’t understand how to alter their bad perspective.
5. Be Honest in Explaining About Their Fears
Many children are anxious about matters like mortality, conflict, violence, or topics they read or watch in the news. Discuss their concerns and honestly address any questions. Take the time to explain what is occurring in a way that sets their anxieties without sugarcoating the realities.
6. Set a Good Example for Managing Anxiety
By showing children how you manage their emotional anxieties, you may support children in various ways. You can’t tolerate the anxiety if you constantly whine over the phone with a friend.
Try to pretend you are experiencing tension and anxiety so that kids may hear or see you handling it smoothly, enduring it, and feeling victorious after overcoming it.
7. Develop Child Bravery
Don’t lose hope if your child occasionally slips up and reverts to old habits because this might happen during stressful conditions or phases of change. These happenings are normal, indicating that you should train children once more.
Additionally, remind your child frequently of what they could not perform before acquiring coping mechanisms for anxiety and overcoming fears. Seeing how far they have progressed can be extremely motivating for your child.
8. Apply the Stepladder Technique
Anxious kids will frequently go to great efforts to conquer their anxieties. However, avoiding circumstances makes them more anxious. Regardless of how frightening it may feel, engaging with worries will soon help your child overcome anxiety.
Use the stepladder method to assist your kid in facing their worries one step at a time. This strategy is to get them to continue doing it until it becomes less frightening.
9. Train Them to Breathe Deeply
You can reduce child anxiety symptoms by implementing deep breathing exercises. Train your kid how to relax with some basic breathing techniques if they frequently exhibit visible signs of anxiety like a speeding heartbeat or tense muscles.
Additionally, you might also have them learn the “ bubble-blowing” activity. Encourage them to act as if they are using a wand to make bubbles. Instruct them that they must blow softly to create a large bubble.
When to Seek Help From an Expert?
Consult an expert if your child’s anxiousness persists for longer than two weeks. If your child’s anxiety affects their ability to operate daily, you must consult a doctor. Like the professionals in Special Needs Resources, they will help you treat your child with an anxiety disorder.
For instance, kids may require professional help if their participation in school, grades, or struggle to engage in social interactions are all impacted by their anxiousness.
Although professionals can treat anxiety disorders, they frequently go unreported and misdiagnosed. Consult a specialist if your child is suffering from an anxiety disorder.
Help Kids Combating Anxiety
Kids can get through worries and fear problems, even if assisting your child with their worries can feel overwhelming and exhausting for you as a guardian.
Using these techniques and providing your child with connection and encouragement can increase their sense of empowerment. They will eventually learn that you will pay attention to their problems and provide them with solutions, assistance, and comfort.
References:
https://www.verywellfamily.com/strategies-to-help-an-anxious-child-4177327
https://childmind.org/article/what-to-do-and-not-do-when-children-are-anxious/
https://www.heretohelp.bc.ca/infosheet/strategies-for-children-with-generalized-anxiety-disorder
