Stress Management for Kids and Teens
Stress Management for Kids and Teens
Helping Our Children Thrive In An Era Of Increased Anxiety, Depression, And Social Media
In this newsletter, we provide you with notes on Girls On The Brink: Helping Our Daughters Thrive In An Era Of Increased Anxiety, Depression, And Social Media, an episode of Moms of Tweens and Teens.
Host Sheryl Gould is the Founder of Moms of Tweens and Teens, parenting educator, and speaker. She offers encouragement and equips moms with a deeper understanding of the unique needs of their tween or teen and how to meet them where they're at and support them to thrive.
In today’s episode, she is joined by Donna Jackson Nakazawa, an award-winning science journalist, author, and an internationally-recognized speaker whose work explores the intersection of neuroscience, immunology, and human emotion.
Read our notes below.
Topics Covered in this Summary
Effect of Estrogen on the Brain
Stress Management for Kids and Teens
Effectively Building Your Child’s Positive Inner Voice
Effect of Estrogen on the Brain
Most of the time, when we think about estrogen, we think about how it affects ovulation and the menstrual cycle in women. However, researchers are finding out that estrogen also plays a very important role in the brain.
Estrogen in women improves verbal memory, visual memory, and attention. It also improves verbal memory in men.
In addition, estrogen can have an effect on women's mental health.
Stress Management for Kids and Teens
We usually think of stress when bad things happen. However, good things that are coming up, like graduations, holidays, or new things to do, can also cause stress.
Kids and teens feel stressed when they have to get ready for, adjust to, or protect themselves from something. When something important to them is at risk, they feel stress. Even when the change is for the better, it can cause stress.
As a parent, you can’t prevent your children from feeling stress. However, you can help kids and teens cope.
Here are some things parents can do:
Help kids feel safe, loved, and cared for. This is the best way to offset stress. Feeling close to you and knowing you love and accept them is more important than ever. Provide routines, like the same bedtime, eating a meal together, or being there after school. Routines provide a rhythm and let kids know there are things they can count on.
Teach coping skills. Kids feel better when they know there are things they can do for themselves to offset their stress. Kids of all ages can learn and practice calm breathing and meditation.
Help them take a break from stress. Make time to play, draw or paint, spend time in nature, read a book, play an instrument, and be with friends and family. These activities are more than just fun. They help kids and teens feel positive emotions.
Give kids and teens extra support and care. Be there to listen and talk. Let kids know that they are safe. Validate and accept their feelings. Let them know that, with time, they will feel better.
Effectively Building Your Child’s Positive Inner Voice
An inner voice may develop during times of extreme stress. It's also sometimes seen in mental health conditions, such as anxiety and depression.
As parents, we want to be there for our kids and help them. However, building your child's positive inner voice takes a lot more than just praise, and even the right kind of praise isn't enough. It's about helping your kids deal with all of their thoughts, even the bad ones.
Here are a few ways you can help your child:
Focus on improving your own reaction through calming, and then problem-solving. If you can show your child that you can remain calm in the face of difficulties and problems, then you are giving them an alternative perspective on the situation.
Help your child develop clear boundaries. When you help your children develop healthy personal boundaries, it teaches them to realize that everyone is responsible for their own emotions and helps them develop their positive inner voice.
When things go well or poorly, think out loud in healthy ways to model an inner voice the kids can use in the future.
For example, “Wow, washing all those dishes feels great.” “I didn't finish my list today, but I'll catch up tomorrow,”.
As most parents know, you can play an important role in improving your children’s life skills when you work on your own emotions. A big part of it is managing your own emotional regulation.