How Do I Help My Stressed 7-Year-Old?

It’s normal for your child to feel a wide range of emotions such as fear, anger, and worry. But when these emotions begin to affect your child’s behavior and daily habits, there might be more significant problems.

Stress is different from anxiety, and anxiety is different from stress. In general, anxiety is characterized by persistent worries that don’t ever seem to go away. On the other hand, stress is your child’s natural and common response to a variety of situations. These situations might include key life changes, things they see as threats, new fears, or even changes in friendships.

Consider these three steps to help your stressed child.

1. Acknowledge

Acknowledging your child’s feelings and emotions is critical to helping your child feel like they’re listened to and seen. Provide your child with reassurance of how much you value and love them.

2. Express

In moments when your child shares his or her feelings of stress or worry, recognize that you have an opportunity to balance your instruction and teaching with listening and support. Try to create paths to releasing stress that involve your child’s favorite activities like exercise or creative arts.

3. Support

Providing support to your child can take many different forms. And this is where you get to pair your creativity with how your child best receives love and affection. Sometimes physical touch shows support better than words. Other times, your child might simply need you to listen and sit with them as they share their feelings.

Remember that you know your child the best. If you think your child needs more help coping with increased stress, call our counseling line at 1-800-A-FAMILY. And to learn more about creating a mentally healthy home for your family, check out more resources.