All children experience a little anxiety from time to time. They may be nervous about the first day of school, a big test coming up, or the neighbor’s dog that likes to bark. Oftentimes children are able to push past this fear and it doesn’t have a lasting impact on their daily life. However, when children have trouble calming themselves and their anxieties intensify, it can be time to seek additional help like counseling at PediaPlex. Anxiety is a very treatable condition, and one that children can learn to manage. There are some ways that you can support your child in overcoming their anxiety:
Teach them calming strategies: When they feel anxiety coming on, have them try some deep breathing exercises or focus on something that makes them happy.
Avoid too much reassurance: You can’t realistically promise that they’ll ace their test, or whatever they’re worried about won’t happen. You just don’t know. But you can reassure them that they will get through it. Be empathetic to their fears, but acknowledge them nevertheless.
Talk through their worries: Let your child explain their fears and then work through different scenarios. Seeing a situation from different perspectives and having multiple ideas for coping strategies can be reassuring.
Be aware of your own anxieties: If your child sees that you don’t handle things well, this can increase their fears. Practice calming strategies yourself and show them that things turned out okay for you and you faced your fears.
If their anxiety is interfering with their daily life and becoming problematic, counseling at PediaPlex can help them to overcome their fears and learn more effective coping strategies. As much as you want to, you can’t protect your child from everything, but you can empower them to know that they can deal with the challenges they face and take life one day at a time.
If your child is struggling with anxiety, contact PediaPlex today to learn more about how counseling can help.
