What to Do about New School Year Anxieties

Here it comes! School is reopening in a week or two. Are you and your children ready? Transitions are hard for most people but particularly for young people. It’s normal for children and teens to be a bit anxious about starting a new school year. It’s usual for kids to be full of questions. It’s also normal for parents to be anxious about their children’s anxiety. You may have anxieties based on your childhood experiences in school or worries about what’s ahead for your child. You can do much to soothe everyone’s anxieties with some thoughtful preparation. Master your own anxieties: Separate your anxieties from your children’s. If your experiences in school weren’t happy and satisfying, you may be very anxious that the same thing will happen to your children. For your own sake, and your child’s, it’s important to acknowledge your worries and to do what you can to calm them. Your kids have enough to worry about without worrying about your worrying. Talk to your partner, your best friends or your therapist about your anxieties, not your children. Work it through so you can be your most encouraging self when supporting your children. Tell positive stories: Even if school was generally difficult for you, it is highly unlikely that all 12 years of school were a challenge every day in every way. Think about moments when you felt good about a teacher, about overcoming a challenge, about mastering a lesson, or when something fun and funny happened. Talking about t...
Source: Psych Central - Category: Psychiatry Authors: Tags: Anxiety Children and Teens Family General Motivation and Inspiration Parenting School Issues Sleep Stress Students back to school bullying Child Development Childhood Anxiety Peer pressure school anxiety Teaching Source Type: news