Anxiety is a normal human emotion that everyone experiences from time to time. Nonetheless, for some children, anxiety becomes excessive, persistent, and disruptive to daily activities. Common signs of anxiety disorder in children include excessive worrying, difficulty sleeping, physical symptoms like stomachaches and headaches, avoidance of social situations, and emotional outbursts. Anxiety can significantly affect a child’s academic performance, friendships, and overall quality of life.
While the specific causes of anxiety disorders are complex, research suggests that genetics, brain chemistry, adverse childhood experiences, family history and trauma may play a role. Anxiety disorders also often co-occur with other mental health conditions like depression, ADHD, or obsessive-compulsive disorder. Regardless of the cause, it’s important for parents to take childhood anxiety seriously and pursue professional treatment options. Ignoring symptoms can allow anxiety to worsen over time and increase the child’s risk for challenges in adulthood as well.
Treating Childhood Anxiety
The people at Aspire Psychological, based out of New Jersey, say that cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is considered the first-line psychosocial treatment for childhood anxiety. CBT helps children recognize the connection between their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. A skilled CBT therapist will teach the anxious child how to identify irrational or exaggerated worried thoughts, challenge these anxious perspectives, and replace them with more realistic, helpful outlooks. Using exercises, role playing, and homework assignments means the child can practice these mental skills regularly. Mastering these techniques can substantially reduce anxiety levels over time by reshaping negative thought patterns before they spiral out of control.
In addition to traditional talk therapy sessions, a course of CBT may also include gradual exposures to anxiety-provoking situations or stimuli. Systematically confronting fears in a controlled, intentional manner means exposures help the child learn that avoiding feared situations tends to make anxiety worse in the long run. With the therapist’s compassionate coaching and support, the child gains firsthand experience in managing and moving through anxiety successfully.
Lifestyle Changes and Coping Skills
Making positive lifestyle changes and learning coping strategies can also empower the anxious child to take some control over managing day-to-day symptoms. Parents can support their child in practicing the following research-backed tips:
- Prioritize sleep and maintain a consistent bedtime routine. Adequate rest promotes emotional balance and mental resilience.
- Exercise regularly as physical activity releases endorphins and reduces stress hormones.
- Limit intake of sugary and caffeinated drinks which negatively impact mood. Stay hydrated with water and herbal teas instead.
- Use calming strategies like deep breathing, visualization, meditation, and positive self-talk when rising anxiety is detected.
- Confide in trusted friends and family members face-to-face or via phone/text. Speaking about fears, validating emotions, and getting encouragement helps anxious children feel less alone.
- Shift focus to the present moment through activities like listening to music, creating art, spending time with pets or immersing in nature. Being mindfully present moment-by-moment counteracts the brain’s fixation on perceived future threats.
- Journal about anxiety triggers, difficult thoughts, and effective coping strategies.
- Incorporate relaxation techniques like yoga, mindfulness meditation, or progressive muscle relaxation which signal the body to deactivate the stress response.
Conclusion
Implementing lifestyle changes, practicing new skills, and confronting anxieties head-on takes time, courage, compassion, patience, and perseverance for children as well as parents and therapists. Progress often occurs slowly with some periodic setbacks. However, by partnering with compassionate professionals and sticking to research-backed strategies tailored to the child’s needs, most families can find an anxiety management plan that works well.
Maintaining realistic expectations while celebrating small victories is key. If one treatment approach fails to provide sufficient relief, don’t lose hope. Many different therapies and combinations of techniques can help children overcome anxiety with commitment and teamwork.