A new school year is here. With it can come anxiety about the unknown, but also comes opportunities for developing problem solving and life skills. One of the best ways to manage anxiety is to get organized. Parents...work with your children to plan their time. Make a plan for each day about when they will do their schoolwork, when they will do chores, when they will do hobbies or extracurricular activities, and when they will have down time.
Also because adequate sleep is essential to stress management make sure your children have a regular and relaxing bedtime routine. Planning gives everyone a sense of control and that leads to lower anxiety. Each new year brings both challenges and opportunities for children AND parents to learn, here are a couple things parents need to keep in mind to help manage stress and not pass your anxiety on to your kids.
The first to remember is modeling is the greatest form of teaching... so anxious parents make anxious kids. This leads to my second point–parents, you need to practice your own mental health self care. Take time every day to talk to your closest friends, read, exercise, or seek the help you need.
-Jerry Strausbaugh, EdD, LPCCS, Executive Director
