As a mom and educator, I see anxiety in children play out in so many different behaviors. Sometimes I see children avoiding eye contact or being extremely clingy and other times it manifests itself in much more aggressive, more alarming behavior. Both behaviors can be really frustrating to deal with and require a lot of patience. This is where we as parents, grandparents and teachers play an important role. Recognizing both reactions to anxiety (avoidance/aggression) as anxiety and not reacting in a negative way to what is often deemed ’naughty’ behavior.
“An anxious brain is a strong, healthy brain that is a little overprotective.”
Overreacting to anxious behaviors with punitive discipline only exacerbates the situation and increases the anxiety inside each child. Taking a breath and encouraging the child to take a deep breath will go far in calming the anxiety. The calmer we are as caregivers in these moments of anxiety, the smoother the outcome. These extra steps take a lot of patience and a bit more time which can be hard when we’re racing off to work or to a meeting or appointment.
What are some of your tricks when helping to calm a child experiencing anxiety? Next month we’ll share some of our anxiety calming techniques used by our teachers at Creative Corner School.
In learning,
Christine Cronin