Anxiety and Children Henderson NV
When I think of anxiety I think of college tests, public speaking and even when I gave birth to my second child. Anxiety seems as it should be an adult problem. Unfortunately many children have anxiety. I bring this matter to attention as a few weeks ago I hear my step daughter started making a ticking sound with her tongue. This occurred on the way make to her time share with her mother. Now we do have a mental health professional involved there are things parents can do to notice, alleviate and help their child understand anxiety.
Anxiety actually affects up to 20% of children. The causes of anxiety in children can be genetics, stressful life circumstances (I think this is our problem) and can also be a learned behavior. The signs your child maybe experiencing anxiety can be a nervous twitch ( like we see ), Not wanting to go to school (something we experience lately and she loves school) , trouble sleeping or restless sleep, nightmares, avoiding situation, frequent complaints of stomach aches and or headaches we experience this as well) and constant worrying. Most children who have anxiety like my step daughter are typically very well behaved children and the anxiety often gets over looked. Since I have been working with children so long as well as working in areas of mental illness, I was able to clearly see the anxiety and how it presented itself in this child.
You cannot eliminate anxiety in your life or the life of your child, you just want to learn how to manage it. Communication is a huge key here. Teaching your child to understand their feeling, fears and concerns and being able to communicate them well help them manage their anxiety. You always want to be positive and supportive, never leading. Where ever the stress in your child’s life is coming from you do not want to harbor on that trigger. You want to build confidence and set realistic goals. Like I have written in other articles providing a consistent environment and schedule with your child helps them feel safe. As evident in my step daughter- When she comes back from and erratic environment where she does not eat well or sleep well she is a mess for like 24 hours and literally sleeps up to 14 hours.
Sleeping and a good diet and a good schedule will naturally help decrease triggers that may make a child anxious. Teach your child to breathe. The extra oxygen will naturally help the brain calm down. Talk to your child about talking about what they are feeling- don’t just tell them they will be ok. You want your child to feel like you understand them. A child that knows how to communicate well, will become an adult that can communicate well. You want your child to know that the way they feel is normal and they are not the only ones that have these feeling. If the anxiety does not improve or you have triggers that are out of your control, you may want to seek medical attention with a mental health specialist.
