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For all the concerns we have as parents in the modern age, it’s the stress and anxiety of our children that throws up the most amount of worry. It seems that now, even in comparison to 10 or 15 years ago, children have a lot more to contend with. It’s not just exam stress anymore! Now, there’s social media, or peer pressure in many different forms, but if you throw into the mix the idea that a lot of children have to grow up really quickly, either due to the result of their parents getting a divorce, or some children having to act as a caregiver to their parents. Stress is at an all-time high for the very people who should be out playing and enjoying life. How can we minimize stress in our children?
Tackle The Idea Of Perfection
Social media is a culprit for this. If your children actively use social media platforms, no doubt they’re being exposed to their friends having the so-called “perfect” life.The dangers of social media in adults are well documented, when you think about the average adult being a well-rounded person, in comparison to a child, where the learning process is far steeper, they feel the pressure to convey this perfect life too. You can either minimize their exposure to social media, or you can tackle the idea of perfection head-on. We all take time to learn that perfection is something that doesn’t exist. We need to teach them that it’s okay to be imperfect. If they strive for perfection in all areas of their life, not just on social media, but through school, sports, or extracurricular activities, this pressure is the root cause of their anxieties. We all make mistakes, and it’s important to communicate this as early on in the child’s life as possible.
Get Professional Help (If It’s Needed)
It can get to a point where they are so pressured, it can have an impact on their nervous system, or it can manifest itself in mental health problems. Getting professional help is essential if you, as a parent, feel you are unable to cope. It can be a big obstacle to jump over, especially if your child is reticent to discuss anything relating to their mental health. But, it’s not just the cliched methods of professional help that can benefit a child, such as counseling. There are techniques like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) that aim to change how your child thinks and perceives things. Sometimes we have such a skewed attitude towards something, that we invariably evoke a negative mindset.
Change Their Mindset
As well as CBT, it’s also something you can help nurture from home. Confidence is at an all-time low in many children, and this is for various reasons. Of course, the old-fashioned bully tactics have been replaced by cyberbullying, text bullying, and social media bullying. Bullies have more options to get a rise out of their targets. And while this isn’t new, the idea of instilling confidence in your child is still through the best old-fashioned methods. Increasing the sense of pride in themselves is something that can be done through traditional methods, whether it’s karate classes or outlets that encourage their social skills. It depends on the child and their own individual circumstances, but it’s about feeling confident in their own abilities, that carries through in life. Yes, it’s a cliche that if you let bullies walk over you now, they’ll walk over you the rest of your life, but it’s about the attitude that we have that belies those cliches.
Set A Good Example
Why should our children do what we tell them to do if we don’t do it ourselves? It’s very simple! Set a good example for your children in how to walk through life, and they’ve got a blueprint to follow. This means taking a long hard look at yourself, especially if you tell your child to do things or guide them in the right direction, but you don’t do these things yourself. Taking a long hard look in the mirror is something we’ve all got to do as parents, and it’s vital that you practice what you preach. If you don’t do this, why should they trust your better judgement? And if they don’t trust you, how are they going to rely on you for the real lessons in life?
Look At Lifestyle Habits
If you break it down to what your child does in any given week, a third is roughly spent in school, a third roughly spent at home, and a third spent sleeping. If your child consistently displays symptoms of anxiety or stress, look at their environment. Of course, school is vital to developing a sense of independence and intelligence, but if their immediate problems are in school, it can feel conflicted to step in as an interfering parent. Judge this carefully! But what you can sway is the home environment, but also if they are sleeping properly! Health is something that we overlook a lot when it comes to diagnosing stress and anxiety. Children are, generally, going to consume a lot of sugar. Sugar can give most of us mood swings. If your child has a sensitivity to sugar, and as a family, you eat a generally poor diet, this is one of the first things to change. And if your child isn’t sleeping properly, for example, due to being on their phone late at night, this is going to have a detrimental effect on their sleep quality. Blue light from smartphones impacts our ability to produce melatonin, the sleep hormone. But you need to look at your child’s habits, there may be a clue there in that you can solve that will help to even out some of the anxiety.
It’s painful to see your children go through stressful and anxious periods in life if you don’t learn the root cause behind it. But at the same time, if you tackle the big issues that every child appears to face in the digital world, the issues are going to compound themselves, and your child is going to grow up in a constant state of anxiety.
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