Most people have anxiety, to some degree and children are not an exception to this. 

Like an adult, children can go through disappointments, failure, and change. And while these are normal parts of life, this can lead to stress and anxiety in children. 

Anxiety is not always a bad thing.  In fact it is one of the fundamental human emotion experienced on most of the occasion. Human beings are wired to react to danger or threat and so does the children.

Sometimes that anxiety will help our children, keeping them safe. And a little anxiety always helps them get their work done on time. 

However, anxiety becomes a problem when it becomes persistent and unbearable. Too much anxiety can be troublesome and detrimental to child’s mental well-being.

Getting fearful about dark, shadow, or even little puppy is common in children. As children begin to mature, these irrational fears get replaced with reality-based worries such as fear of performance. 

This acts as a stressors, which eventually develops feelings of being in danger. And instead of looking at the situation, children just think about how it can go wrong.

Yes, child’s mind can make connections.

When they are unable to handle a situation, it leaves children feeling like they must completely avoid a situation.

Furthermore, anxious children demands answer to unknowns. When these unknown remain unanswered give rise to a tendency for vivid imaginations, which make it difficult to distinguish the difference between reality and fantasy. And therefore, they appear visibly tense or nervous at different times during the day. 

Experience of anxiety in children

Children can often feel anxious at different times as they grow up. They experience anxiety in a number of different ways as every child is different. 

Children might explain it as a feeling of dread, panic, sadness or fear. They might talk about it in terms of physical symptoms like butterflies in their stomach, sweaty palms, trembling or a fast heartbeat. Anxiety can make children to experience all these symptoms even when a danger isn’t present. 

And as parents we don’t need any special training just to realize that these feelings are coming from a place of fear, rather than a place of play.

Children suffering from generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), a type of anxiety disorder, have unrealistic worry almost on every aspect of life. They worried more intensely than other children in the same circumstances. For instance, they are more often concerned about their performance at school or sporting events, about personal safety, or about natural disaster and future events.

Most common experiences are recurring fears about everyday life, increased irritability, avoidance of school or even friends and trouble sleeping.

When anxiety is persistent, it impacts multiple areas of a children’s life. It can prevent children from going to school or joining a fun game with their friends. Child may want to avoid the place or situation that makes them feel like something scary is going to happen. Such anxiety can have an effect on their ability to function and enjoy life. 

This interferes significantly with the children reaching age-appropriate goals. Later in life, it can even prevent them venturing away from home for important work.

The worst part is our efforts to get our children relax only make things worse, making us feel powerless to help them. Unfortunately, anxiety takes away happiness from the life of children as well as family.

Role of parenting to relieve anxiety

Despite the significant adverse impact on educational achievement and family life, anxiety in children commonly remain untreated. These children are unlikely to present for help independently because of lack of awareness and knowledge.

If not addressed properly, anxiety in childhood can present a risk for lifelong psychological disturbances. 

In view of these concerns, parents need to support their children.

Also Check : Transforming Anxiety Into Hope

Managing anxiety can sometimes be difficult, but there are options available to help our children. As parents it’s our responsibility to help our children to work through their fears in a healthy way.

The first thing we need to understand as parents is not to express our own anxious feelings in front of our children. This prevents children to get anxious over little things by learning with an example. Children are perceptive and can easily grasp if we keep complaining about our own inability to handle stress.

It is important to support our children with compassion and understanding. Their feelings of anxiety are real, and they are suffering. Therefore, we need to validate our child’s feelings and create an emotional safety for our children. 

At the same time, we must encourage our children to face fear in healthy ways. We can give them correct explanation of the situation and why they are feeling so and how to overcome this in appropriate ways. 

With time and support, children can be calm in situations they were previously afraid of. 

Yes, we can prevent anxiety from worsening in our children by encouraging behaviors that promote emotional resilience. 

Also Check : Be Okay With Uncertainty

Disclaimer

Mediclin Brain Health’s content is for informational and educational purposes only. Our website is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.