Moms, do you know that stress is a natural reaction? Stress occurs as children are experiencing change: physical, mental, and emotional. Stress can be positive and negative.
In a reasonable portion, stress can be good as it can motivate someone to be more productive, trying harder, even making positive changes. However, stress often gives a negative impacts because it is related to health and affecting someone’s life as a whole.
Regardless of age, people can experience stress. Children, adults, to the elderly can also be stressed. Wow, Moms must have just heard about stress on the children. What do you think can make them to be stressed? Though it seems the problem that they face is not as complicated as adults’ problem.
Don’t get it wrong, Moms. Although it seems that children’s problem is simple, but they don’t have the ability to overcome it yet. They are different from the adults as they aren’t mentally and emotionally mature yet. Therefore, children’s problem can’t be equated with adults’.
Stressor is a stimuli or event that can trigger a stress response. Stressor experienced by the children can come from the family problems (divorce or spouse quarrel, financial crisis, death of a family member), problems at school (achievement, rank, friendship), illness, mental trauma, facing new environment, puberty, and so on.
Children often do not realize that they are having stress. Therefore, Moms should be able to recognize the stress signs on the children, so you could help them to overcome it. Signs of stress on the children can be:
- Loss of appetite or dietary changes
- Headache
- Bedwetting
- Nightmares or other sleeping disorders
- Stomachache
- Excessive anxiety, unable to be relaxed
- Fearful, such as fear of darkness, being alone, meeting strangers, and so on.
- Only stick to their parents
- Difficult to control their emotions
- Aggressive behavior
- Withdrawing themselves from the environment
What could parents do to overcome the stress?
- Create a warm, full of affection, and reliable family environment.
- Spend time for the children every day, for example by reading them a fairy tale before going to bed or listening to their story as they tell you their feelings.
- Get used to talk to them from heart to heart. So they will not hesitate to express their feelings and discomfort towards you.
- Be a good listener, avoid criticizing or drawing conclusion too quickly.
- Teach your children not to hesitate to ask questions.
- Grow their confidence by giving affections and encouraging them.
- Assist them in determining various choices in their life, but do not dictate their behavior.
- Ask them to actively exercising together.
- Seek for help from a medical professional (psychologist or child psychiatrist)if you think that you couldn’t handle it yourself.
Remember, Moms, attention and affection from the family will help the children avoid stress. Give them a continuous support and encouragement so they grow strong and able to enjoy their childhood with joy.
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