December 30th, 2009 | 2 Comments
As seen in SheKnows.com Pregnancy & Baby
Tracy McGinnis December 29, 2009
The holiday season brings with it family, traditions and memories that last a lifetime. It can also bring unwanted stress, added responsibilities to an otherwise already busy schedule and for children it can mean meltdowns.
Lori Lite, a childhood anxiety expert and creator of http://www.stressfreekids.com says it is important to keep children on regular schedules to avoid holiday meltdowns.
“Tired children, late nights, cramped kitchens, argumentative relatives, crowded malls, overwhelming hosting duties, stretched budgets and high anxiety. These are just some of the stressors that quickly replace the visions of feasting, exchanging gifts, and gathering with family and friends over the holidays.”
With so much added to your to do list this season – how can you prevent and deal with those dreaded meltdowns when they occur?
December 22nd, 2009 | 0 Comments
Why Self-Esteem Is Important
Self-esteem isn’t like a cool pair of sneakers that you’d love to have but don’t have to have. A kid needs to have self-esteem. Good self-esteem is important because it helps you to hold your head high and feel proud of yourself and what you can do. It gives you the courage to try new things and the power to believe in yourself. It lets you respect yourself, even when you make mistakes. And when you respect yourself, adults and other kids usually respect you, too.
Having good self-esteem is also the ticket to making good choices about your mind and body. If you think you’re important, you’ll be less likely to follow the crowd if your friends are doing something dumb or dangerous. If you have good self-esteem, you know that you’re smart enough to make your own decisions. You value your safety, your feelings, your health — your whole self! Good self-esteem helps you know that every part of you is worth caring for and protecting.
December 22nd, 2009 | 0 Comments
as seen in USA Today
Your daughter “knows about terrorist attacks and school shootings. She talks about it more than you are comfortable with. . . . Is she becoming the nervous type or is this simply a symptom of stress?”
Your child is having another melt down in the middle of your kitchen. You were just about to implement your highly developed multi-tasking skills of starting dinner while cleaning up this morning’s breakfast crumbs and arranging car pool for tomorrow. The phone rings and caller ID lets you know that it’s your teenager’s teacher. Your six year old is sitting at the table crying and screaming for no apparent reason. He is refusing to do his homework and has ripped the paper to shreds. His nails are bitten and he has announced that he isn’t going to school tomorrow.
Most of us don’t have to imagine this scene. It hits close to home for most American families. How do you handle this scenario? Do you scream and threaten him? Do you put him in time out? Do you secretly wonder if Ritalin would help? Do you bribe him with ice cream or do you decide he is having a cranky day… again?
December 16th, 2009 | 0 Comments
You have to breathe, so why not use your inhalations and exhalations to manage your ADHD symptoms? “Several studies show that rhythmic, paced breathing balances the autonomic nervous system,” says Richard Brown, M.D., associate clinical professor of psychiatry at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.
What does that mean to someone with attention deficit disorder? Controlling your breathing can help you become more attentive and more relaxed at the same time.
Many of Brown’s ADD patients have benefited from coherent breathing — a term coined by author and yoga specialist Stephen Elliott because the technique synchronizes heart, lung, and brain rhythms.
December 4th, 2009 | 0 Comments
Here are some tips to help you and your children have a more enjoyable and “stress free” holiday season.
- Even though the kids are on vacation and staying up late you can still put them on a bedtime schedule. Pick a reasonable time that does not cause you any stress. A whole household can become calm knowing that the children get ready for bed at 9:30 and lights out at 10:00. The kids will appreciate feeling well rested and you will appreciate time for yourself.
- Shopping with children is stressful for everyone. Try to do your adult shopping with just adults. Avoid taking your children when you need to go in and out of the car and different stores. Do not take them to stores that are not kid friendly. Do take your children shopping when you are going to one particular store and looking for a gift they will enjoy helping you find. Make sure the time you spend shopping is age appropriate. This will make the outing fun and lower anxiety levels for you and your child.
December 1st, 2009 | 0 Comments
Teach your child how to self soothe before his/her visit with Santa or relatives. Slow, deep breathing is an excellent technique that can be used before and during stressful or challenging situations. Enjoy the following excerpt from Sea Otter Cove: A Relaxation Story, by Lori Lite of Stress Free Kids.com.
It is fun to learn sea otter breathing with the sea child.
The sea child told the sea otter to breathe in through his nose and out through his nose. He focused all of his attention on the tip of his nose.
They both did this breathing together.
November 14th, 2009 | 0 Comments
bedtime relaxation
Bedtime is often one of the most stressful times of the day for families. Kids are bouncing off the walls on their second wind, parents are exhausted, and the clock says it’s past time to be asleep. Yoga can help bring a sense of calm, induce the relaxation response, and ensure a good night sleep for children and parents alike.
First however, some basics on how to set the scene for a healthy sleep.
- Establish a bedtime routine. We all function better with routines, but children especially appreciate knowing a pattern of behaviours will lead to a specific situation or response. A ‘getting ready for bed’ routine which includes tidying the toys, healthy snack, dental and physical hygiene, changing into PJ, reading a book with Mom or Dad, etc., will teach them that it is time to slow down mentally and physically, and prepare them for sleep. Some great books which focus on relaxation before bed can be found at Stress Free Kids- Relaxation and Stress Management books and CDs for children, teens and adults.
November 11th, 2009 | 2 Comments
by Kristin Cantu on November 11, 2009
The American Psychological Association (APA) released results from a survey that reveal that parents are out of touch when it concerns their kids’ stress levels. The APA reports the greatest stress sources for kids are related to school pressure and family finances, and that parents often underestimate how stressed their kids really are. We talked to Children’s Hospital Boston psychiatrist Stuart Goldman, MD, about how parents can help manage their child’s stress and how they can be more in sync with what’s bothering their kids.
Why aren’t parents more perceptive to their child’s feelings of stress?
Teen and tweens are known for being inexplicably moody or irritable. When a child does the stereotypical stomping up the stairs accompanied by a loud, “Leave me alone!” it’s often perceived as moodiness, when in fact it could actually be a sign of stress, anxiety or depression. From a psychiatric point of view, parents under appreciate how a child internalizes problems (anxiety or depression), in contrast to when the child externalizes problems (misbehavior).
November 4th, 2009 | 2 Comments
Prolonged thumb sucking in a child over 5 or 6 is most likely created by the anxiety felt from the parents worrying too much about the child sucking his thumb. Experts say that an older child still doing it has been locked in to using it as a mechanism for self-calming, which is not a bad thing. It may hint at the fact that he has some socialization issues and may need to learn how to play more with other children his age; he needs more playtime with others. You should consult your pediatrician, but speaking to you as a behavior specialist, I don’t believe that this requires any discipline. I think you should just ignore it and let his peers and the outside world let him know (without your involvement) when it is time to put down his thumb.
My youngest daughter sucked her thumb later than we wanted her to but we ignored it and she stopped on her own.
November 3rd, 2009 | 4 Comments
A friend of mine who is a high school English teacher in our local schools has been perplexed by the behavior of some of her current students. She said, “Help me understand why a third of my students can’t sit still in their desks? They wiggle, they squirm, they tap their pencils and their feet and are constantly in motion.” She is experiencing a dose of today’s “hard-wired” youngsters.
Although some of this student behavior is developmentally appropriate, our society has rapidly experienced a metamorphosis that fosters and perpetuates the kind of fidgety behavior that my teacher friend is observing. Our fast-paced, complex culture places stress and strain on all of us. Many times our children feel overwhelmed by the “juggling act” that is performed in trying to keep their lives in balance.
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