By Alyson Fortner Widell, LCSW
The beginning of the school year can cause increased anxiety and panic due to the variety of changes for families at this time. Children may have to re-adjust being away from parents and loved ones for the majority of the day. Students may have to meet a new teacher, make new friends, or orient themselves to a new campus.
Increasing pressure for high academic achievement also causes heightened anxiety in students, especially at the start of the school year. The Child Mind Institute states that engaging with your children in an open yet casual way can be most effective when monitoring their mental well being and attitude about school.
Validate Feelings
This article entitled, “Back to School Anxiety”, by Caroline Miller supports the idea that acknowledging and validating children’s fears before offering solutions can help them create more security and build trust to share feelings with you in the future. This cannot be more true in my experience with my past clients. Often parents and children have a disconnect since parents want to fix the problem for children or protect them from any level of discomfort.
Teaching children how to tolerate discomfort, instead of running away from it right away, is an invaluable life-skill. This can be as simple as instead of saying “Nothing to be worried about! You’ll be fine!” try to listen to their fears, concerns, and worries and acknowledge that those feelings must be challenging for them. How parents react to children’s behavior affects their ability to regulate and function when big feelings arise.
Model Healthy Responses to Anxiety
Taking care of our own anxiety and general well-being is the first step towards modeling how to manage strong and uncomfortable feelings for our children. That being said, no one is perfect! The juggling act of balancing a new school calendar, enrolling in extracurriculars, coordinating a new carpool plan, and functioning at work is not for the weak. Acknowledging this transition is difficult, paying attention to physical and behavioral changes in our children, and being the best example of health and well-being we can be can go a long way.
More Support
If anxiety becomes so intense that children are avoiding school altogether, it’s important that parents continue to send them so that the worry does not win. Feel free to reach out to a child therapist or Heartship if your child is experiencing headaches, stomachaches, and intense emotional reactions to attending school. This could be a sign of an anxiety disorder or another underlying concern that may warrant extra support.
For more support during this transitional time, The Mental Health Coalition has created a “Mental Health Roadmap” especially targeting the transition back to school for parents and children (You can find it here!)
Resources
https://www.thementalhealthcoalition.org/back-to-school-mental-health-roadmap/
https://naaweb.org/news/650727/Back-to-School-Guide-to-Support-Young-Peoples-Mental-Heal th.htm
Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is for general knowledge and informational purposes only, and does not constitute medical advice. It is not intended to substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of a qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.
