West Town Lane Academy



What is anxiety?Anxiety is a feeling of unease, such as worry or fear that can be mild or severe.Everyone has feelings of anxiety at some point?in their life. For example, you may feel worried and anxious about sitting an exam, or having a medical test or job interview. During times like these, feeling anxious can be perfectly normal. But some people?find it hard to control their worries. Their feelings of anxiety are more constant and can often affect their?daily lives.When the anxiety reaction becomes overly sensitive it can disrupt normal life and become extremely debilitating.121920082550Adrenaline & Anxiety Symptoms Rapid breathing Choking Tummy ache Feel sick Dizzy Fast heart rate Chest tightness Muscle tension Dry mouth Need to go to toilet Tingling in fingers 00Adrenaline & Anxiety Symptoms Rapid breathing Choking Tummy ache Feel sick Dizzy Fast heart rate Chest tightness Muscle tension Dry mouth Need to go to toilet Tingling in fingers 339153518732500Children can be frightened by these symptoms because they don’t understand what is happening. Anxious thoughts are often future orientated and often predict catastrophe.What if……….something bad happens?Coping with the cause of the anxiety can be exhausting and should be dealt with in small parts.Some of the clinical features of Anxiety are:An ongoing anxiety that something bad will happen (what is perceived as ‘bad’ may vary).Intense fear, horror or anger.Sleep problemsAvoidance of feared situation, event or memory. Seeking safetyFeeling tired, restless and irritable. Peer relationships may deteriorate.Inability to stop worrying.“I have been through many terrible things – some of which actually happened!” Mark Twain231457532829500194310026670000Key Point – Symptoms of anxiety can include worries and fears that can lead to us avoiding certain things.Some things that happen in a?child's?life can be stressful and difficult to cope with. Events such as serious illness, death of a loved one, violence/arguments, school issues, being close to someone else who is anxious may contribute to?anxiety. Growing up in a family where others are fearful or?anxious?may lead to learned behaviour and can teach the child to be afraid too.However, all children and young people get anxious at times, and this is a normal part of their development. As they grow up they develop their ‘survival skills’, so they can face challenges in the wider world. We all have different levels of stress we can cope with - some children are just naturally more anxious than others, and are quicker to get stressed or worried. It would not be helpful to avoid stressful situations and a little bit of anxiety is not always a bad thing and at times can even be helpful. 9334501270000 There are many ways you can help your child to manage their anxiety.?left508000Talk to your child about anxiety, what is happening in their body, where they feel it and why it happens. Many children and young people don’t know what they are feeling when they are anxious, and it can be frightening and overwhelming. They might even think they are very ill or that they are having a heart attack.These are things that can really make a difference: Help them to recognise anxious feelings so they can tell when they are becoming anxious and can ask for help.Tell your child it will be okay, and the anxiety will pass. It can be helpful to describe the anxiety as a wave to ride or surf that gets smaller after it peaks.Get?your child to? HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" \o "breathe deeply and slowly" breathe deeply and slowly, in through their nose for three counts and out through their mouth for three counts.?Distract them by focusing on something else.?Give them a cuddle or hold their hand if they will let you - touch can be soothing.It can help to talk to?your child about finding a safe place?in their mind - somewhere that they feel relaxed and happy. It may be a grandparent’s or friend's house or a holiday beside the sea which they can picture when ‘wrong thoughts’ come into their head or they are feeling anxious. Sometimes holding a memento, like a seashell or pebble, can help.Encourage?your child to notice what makes them anxious. Talking it through can help but?your child could also try keeping?a diary or a ‘worry book’.Make a 'worry box'. Your?child can write each?worry down and post it in the box out of sight. Small children will enjoy decorating the box too. They can leave the worries in there for, say, a week to see if they were worth worrying about (if not they can be torn up). Alternatively, you could designate a specific 'worry time' for around 10 or 20 minutes, (but not too close to bedtime, or when the child is in bed), so worries can be saved up for that time. This gives the message that?they are?in control of their worries and not vice versa.Work on positive-thinking. Name their worst case scenarios and think through together how to sort out the situation if it happens, e.g.? ‘I’m worried that we’ll miss the bus.’ ‘What do you think we could do if that happens?’ ‘We could get the next bus’.Help them maintain a healthy lifestyle with regular exercise to reduce the levels of stress hormones, good sleeping habits, calm bedtime routines, limited screen or computer time in the evening, and a healthy diet.-43815021590Anxiety passes away and will not harm your childYou don’t have to fix itDon’t let anxiety guide your decisionsYour child is braver than you thinkTrust your child to face challenges successfullyIt will get easier with practiceTogether you can learn to take charge of anxiety00Anxiety passes away and will not harm your childYou don’t have to fix itDon’t let anxiety guide your decisionsYour child is braver than you thinkTrust your child to face challenges successfullyIt will get easier with practiceTogether you can learn to take charge of anxiety223837519685Anxiety becomes a problem when……….. It becomes too strong for the child to bearIt continues once the threat is goneIt causes avoidance/withdrawal from activitiesThey develop ongoing physical symptomsReassurance has no effectThey display aggression00Anxiety becomes a problem when……….. It becomes too strong for the child to bearIt continues once the threat is goneIt causes avoidance/withdrawal from activitiesThey develop ongoing physical symptomsReassurance has no effectThey display aggressionRecommendationsBooks - The Huge Bag of Worries - Dawn HeubnerDon’t Worry, Be Happy - Poppy O’NeillWhat to do when you worry too much – Dawn HeubnerGrowing up Brave – Donna PincusDon’t pop your cork on Mondays – Adolph Moser Websites – Video clip - Anxiety in Children School refusalYoung Minds helpline: 0808 8025544 ................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download