Helping your Children Ease Stress and Anxiety
Today I am speaking with Katherine a school counselor turned parenting consultant. She will be helping us to work with our children to ease the stress and anxiety while also letting us know it is ok when our children aren’t picking up the things, we continue to ask them day in and day out. I hope you enjoy our conversation.
Common problems creating disharmony in the home:
Basic executive functioning skills tend to be the most common problems in the home, which can create anxiety and problems in the home. Here are a few of the problems she notices in the home.
- Time management
- Organization
- Problem Solving
- Initiating Tasks
It is very difficult to create initiative in your children. They are not just born motivated to do what is told of them. It is important to teach them intrinsic motivation, by finding what motivates them. Create a list of things you would like them to do on a daily basis and then provide them some type of reward when doing this. Praise the behavior you expect.
- Make sure they understand what you are expecting of them
- Acknowledging them when they do the task you asked them to do
- Reward them for the completion of those tasks
It doesn’t need to be a big reward but it can be as simple as allowing them extra time doing something they enjoy. Make sure to ask them what they would enjoy because it may not be what you think it is.
Common issues with Anxiety:
In recent years there has been an increase in anxiety with both adults and children but for kids, Katherine has seen a lot of anxiety coming about once kids get to middle school. There tends to be more desire for perfection, and she feels like social media is partially to blame for that. Children at this age, brains aren’t fully developed, and they are seeing these altered states of reality which has them wishing they were something they aren’t. They also don’t have the communication skills and are struggling to talk through these emotions effectively.
Testing anxiety is more common these days due to Standardized Testing and the pressures they are feeling to constantly improve. It is important for us as parents to manage our expectations of them. Not all children are A students, and if you are expecting them to get the A you may be disappointed. It is important to focus on effort rather than what the final grade is and not what we feel they did but rather asking them how they feel about their effort.
Ways to help Ease Stress and Anxiety:
-Breathing Techniques: Hot Chocolate Breathing or Square Breathing
-Stretching
-Dry erase dice: place different techniques on the dice and have them roll the dice
-Create a worry box and place your worries in the box
-Mindfulness Techniques: The 5 4 3 2 1 Method
Learn what helps your children when they are dealing with emotions or stress and lean into that. We all need different things so ask your children what would help them to feel more calm, less stressed and provide them with tips to help.
Try not to over pack our children’s schedule and really lean into what they need and make sure to ask them how they are feeling throughout the years.
Learn more from Katherine:
Katherine is a licensed professional school counselor turned parenting consultant who is genuinely passionate about supporting parents and families as they navigate through life. Whether you need help with routines at home, getting support to improve behaviors, or are looking for help with school concerns-Katherine can help! She offers virtual and in person consultations to parents all over the country and provides personalized, helpful and supportive strategies that will create success and happiness for your children. Her passion for supporting parents stemmed from her own personal transition to motherhood as Katherine is also a mom of three boys and understands how exhausting and overwhelming the parenting journey can be. Reach out to her today if you could use her personalized support!
Katherine Walters Consulting – Katherine Walters Consulting
