Being a parent, watching your child worried and nervous can be painful. It’s normal for the parents to be overprotective for their child. Just like adults, children also suffer from anxiety. Anxiousness is the most common mental health issue among adolescents and children that requires attention. According to research, 1 out of 20 school going kids suffer from anxiety every year. A greater number of parents do not pay any heed to their child’s changing behavior and considers it as a usual attitude when children throw tantrums over not going to schools, not playing with other kids, or refusing to meet people. Mostly, teenagers suffer from ADHD that makes them an isolated individual. Mothers can play a huge role in helping children reduce their anxiousness by following these practical bits of advice below.

1. Encourage them to Talk

The first and foremost strategy to help your child with anxiety is to encourage them to speak about their fears. Reassuring them and telling them you understand their feeling and emotions can be of great help. Talk to your child; ask them about their concerns and worries. Advise them how they can effectively handle those situations, offer them comfort by staying hopeful and positive words. Mother’s words and their belief in their child can help them reduce their worries. Sharing their feelings and fears can help your child to stay calm.

2. Showing their worries

Being young and dealing with anxiety alone can be troublesome. When c=kids share their feelings, and you tell them to “Relax” or “Not to Worry” won’t help in dealing with their condition. Being worried over a situation serves as a vital function in our lives. A little anxiousness can help in handling precarious situations that scare them. Give the kid your undivided attention, listen to their worries, and help them in devising solutions. When your child shows resistance in social gatherings, ask them about it. Tell them, “it’s okay to feel like that.” Suggest solutions that can help them interact with other individuals and reduce their fear of communication.

3. Practicing breathing exercise

Taking long breaths acts as a coping mechanism for anxious children. When children are worrying over something or have a constant fear in mind, their heart rate increases, and some kids even experience palpitations. Their hands become cold, heart rate increases, and breathing becomes shallow. Teaching your child to take long breaths can genuinely help them in relaxing their bodies. Count till five, and slowly breathe in through your nose and breathe out through your mouth. Doing this practice can aid in normalizing the heart rate, and your child will feel relaxed. Learn more about breathing techniques to ease anxiety quickly can offer plenty of help in stressful situations.

4. Facing their fears

As adults, many times, we avoid situations that are stressful and make us anxious. Similarly, children are afraid to face fearful circumstances. And the best solution for them is avoidance. Conversely, escaping anxiety-provoking circumstances sustains the anxiety rather than reducing it. Bravely facing these scenarios will help the child in lessening the fear naturally, and it will reduce more passage of time. The human body cannot remain anxious for a longer duration. If your child is afraid to speak in front of the whole class, he/she will try to avoid these situations at all costs. The best approach is to encourage them and tell them to start speaking up little by little, and after 2 to 3 attempts there, fear of speaking will significantly reduce.

5. Showing Empathy

Nothing is easy for anxious kids. Young children and adolescents tussle for everyday activities due to their fears and nervousness. This condition can be paralyzing for them, and being a mother, you need to help them and support them. Empathizing with your child makes them feel that they are not alone. Hug them, stroke their hair, kiss them, it will release oxytocin that soothes then makes them feel good. Talking about their anxious feelings will make them realize that their emotions matter. They have someone to support them and guide them in dealing with these situations. Troubled children need these sorts of gestures and words to subside these fearful emotions.

6. Giving heavy blankets

An anxious child struggles with sleep disorders. They face difficulty in staying asleep for a longer time. This makes them demanding and more irritable. Research carried out by National Sleep Foundation; suggests that even if 30 to 60 minutes are missed, it can make their condition worse. Giving them weighted blankets will help the kid to sleep peacefully. Heavy blankets lower down the blood pressure and regulate the pulse rate-making kids more relaxed. Research shows that approximately 80% of parents when tried this tip; it made their child calmer.

7. Teaching Aroma Therapy

Aromatherapy is quite beneficial for those children who are under stress and get anxious quickly. Using this strategy will not only improve your child’s sleep but also reduce their anxiety. Peppermint, lavender, ginger, and orange are the four essential aromatic oils that effective and safe for your kids. These oils have a great fragrance that lifts the children’s mood. You give an oil inhaler to your kid to smell it whenever they feel anxious. Giving them full control of their condition is also an active approach.

8. Pen down feelings

Give your child an appealing dairy and pen and encourage them to write down their feelings. This will help them understand their feelings and emotions as well as brainstorm ideas to face them courageously. Journaling is an excellent idea as it helps the child in having complete control over their thoughts. FreeEssayWriters has some great journaling tips. Children want to vent out their feelings, but they also need to learn how to get their fearful thoughts out on their own. Also, Academist Help has some appealing dairies for kids and teens that will help them in calmly dealing with their situation.

9. Optimistic attitude

Several times children think about the worst scenarios that make them more fretful. These negative thoughts only encourage them to run away from such situations. Avoidance is not the right approach. Inculcate positive thoughts in their mind. Tell them nothing terrible will happen to them and must think positively about the situations. Instead of concentrating on the empty glass, tell them to think about the half-full glass. Every situation has good and bad aspects, and filling your mind with positive thoughts will shift their thinking patterns.

Conclusion

Anxiety can become a massive hurdle in your child’s enjoyment. Instead of dismissing their feelings, give them your time. Do not think these feelings will get better with time. Just like other illness requires treatments, anxiety needs to be treated with useful tips. All your child need is your support and love. Once you apply these tips, observe the positive changes in your child. Be gentle and kind to them.

Image courtesy of WowParenting.com