What is Anxiety?
Anxiety is an important emotion that everyone experiences from time to time. It serves as a built-in alarm system alerting us to a potential danger and preparing us to respond to it. When we experience anxiety, our body goes into a heightened state of awareness and readiness, commonly known as the fight or flight response.
When is Anxiety helpful?
Anxiety can signal the presence of a challenging situation that needs our attention and effort. It can motivate us to prepare for upcoming events, study for exams, or meet deadlines. When managed properly, anxiety can act as a powerful driving force, pushing us to achieve our goals and perform at our best.
When is Anxiety a problem?
When anxiety becomes a persistent and overwhelming emotion, it can significantly impact a child's overall well-being and ability to function in everyday life. Children’s internal alarm systems may be oversensitive for a variety of reasons, including genetic predisposition, environmental factors, and traumatic experiences.
What are the indications that a child might be struggling with Anxiety?
As a parent or caregiver, it is important to be aware of the signs that a child may be struggling with anxiety in order to provide the necessary support and intervention.
Physical Symptoms: These can include frequent headaches, stomach aches, and muscle tension. Additionally, children may experience restlessness, fidgeting, and difficulty relaxing or sitting still. These physical symptoms can be an indicator that a child is experiencing heightened levels of anxiety.
Changes in Behavior: This can present as avoidance of certain activities or social situations, increased irritability or moodiness, and difficulty sleeping. Children may become overly dependent on a parent or caregiver. These changes in behavior can be a result of the child's attempts to cope with their anxiety and may signal an underlying struggle with overwhelming feelings of fear and worry.
Cognitive and emotional changes: This can include excessive worry or fear, perfectionistic tendencies, and a heightened sense of self-doubt. Children may also have difficulty concentrating or be easily distracted, as their anxious thoughts may consume their attention and mental energy. Additionally, children may experience feelings of panic or dread, and may have difficulty controlling their emotions or expressing their feelings effectively.
Social and academic changes: This can present as withdrawal from social activities, difficulty making and maintaining friendships, and a reluctance to participate in class or school activities. These changes could indicate that anxiety is impacting a child's ability to engage in and enjoy typical childhood activities.
Duration and intensity: Typical childhood worries are usually short-lived and do not significantly impact daily functioning. While it is normal for children to experience anxiety in response to specific stressors, such as starting a new school, when symptoms persist for an extended period of time and interfere with a child's ability to participate in activities or maintain relationships, it may be indicative of an underlying anxiety disorder.
How can parents support a child who is struggling with anxiety?
Create a safe and emotionally supportive environment: This can be accomplished by listening to the child's concerns without judgment, validating their feelings, and providing reassurance, validation and encouragement. It is important to communicate with children in a calm and attentive manner, helping them to feel heard and understood.
Promote healthy habits: Physical activity has been shown to reduce anxiety symptoms by releasing endorphins, which are natural mood elevators. Additionally, a balanced diet and adequate sleep can help to regulate the body's stress response, leading to improved emotional well-being.
Establish routine and structure: This can include establishing regular mealtimes, bedtime routines, and activities that the child enjoys. Consistency and predictability can provide a sense of stability and security for children, which can help to reduce anxiety levels.
Limit exposure to stressors: This can include reducing exposure to stressful situations, such as excessive academic pressure or social conflicts, and creating a supportive and nurturing environment in which a child feels secure and valued. It may also be helpful to limit exposure to media and technology, which can contribute to feelings of anxiety and stress.
Seek professional help when needed: If a child's anxiety continues to have a negative impact on daily functioning, then it could be helpful to seek the help of a mental health professional.
Is an assessment with Held Health right for my child?
There are many reasons why a young person may struggle with anxiety, and the ways in which it impact people's lives can be very different. Because of this, a comprehensive overall assessment of a young person is done first to get a full understanding of the current difficulties, triggers, and maintenance factors.
During the initial assessment, the clinician will gather information about the child's history, observed behaviors, and gain an understanding of how symptoms impact a child's day-to-day life. This preliminary assessment may involve both the young person and parents/caregivers.
A report will be written summarizing the assessment, outlining the outcome, and providing recommendations for intervention and support. This could be recommendations for school/home, support sessions for parents, liaison with schools, as well as individual therapeutic sessions with young people and, in some cases, medication treatments.
How can I find out more or book an initial assessment?