It is very important to learn coping skills for kids in today’s world as it’s not that easy anymore to live a playful life of childhood. We still go nostalgic about how free we were in our childhood days and compare our days with today’s kids. Today it’s a different world. They are fully exposed to so much information through the internet, both good and bad. Plus , as a society, we have provided them a world full of prejudices. So they are more sensitive than we were. So help them understand what they are going through and learn coping skills for kids to help them out in difficult situations.
Identify Your Kid’s Feelings
As parents or guardians, we should know coping skills for kids beforehand. Before that, we need to identify what exactly they are going through anger, anxiety, depression, or trauma? Dealing with the situations should be done according to the emotions they are going through.
A child’s emotion can be identified easily, as they cannot hide their
emotions like we adults can do. It could be identified if
- A very talkative child has gone silent suddenly
- He is having nightmares
- He is Finding reasons to skip schools
- He is not leaving your side at all or closed himself in a room
Any absurd change could be taken as a red flag , and an immediate approach is
required.
Coping Skills For Stress And Trauma
- Talking- Children, if not taken care of regularly they can cut you off from their Iives. Being friends with them always help. So try talking, but not suddenly, sow a seed of trust, water it daily, become good friends with them. Only then can they take refuge in you when in need.
- Express yourself- In the world of materialism, we forget about human relations and often don’t express them to our loved ones, taking them for granted. Kids learn from adults. Just like they learn to talk and walk by seeing us, they learn to express themselves from us too. So, show up your big feelings of love and care.
- Daily Motivation -Adults get tired easily , working all day throughout the week. Similarly, kids also have a tight schedule to follow. So like us, they also need a daily
encouragement or motivation to continue. We can deal with stress easily, but they need to learn. So offer a consolatory prize for their daily work, give them gifts, perks, keep them motivated.
Anxiety Issues
It’s common for kids to feel anxious over little things. Don’t Judge them or point out their issues as trivial matters. It is big for them, so try resolving their way and help them out.
- Give them space-Most parents do not feel that their child needs some space to find things by himself and grow thereby. Giving space is one of the best coping skills for kids; if not given space, either your kid would develop irritability , or he would become dependent on you for everything. Let them eat their favorite snacks, pick their friends, select their clothes, etc. This way , they will discover and learn to live on their own.
- Set a Routine activity- Involve them in Physical activities on a routine basis. Do deep breathing exercises, Meditation, and Yoga regularly with them. Encourage healthy habits like timely eating, sleeping, and waking up. This will keep them in a loop and calm their mind and lower further anxiety episodes.
- A calm down room- one of the coping skills for kids who have a history of trauma and stress is, fixing a deal with it. So set up a room or a refuge place for your kid and ask him to put everything he loves and calm him down. So that when he is feeling stressed, he can find refuge in the room.
Losing Connect-
When kids grow old, they start detaching from their parents and keeping their lives within themselves. Of course, it’s natural for kids to go this way , but parents should make sure that they keep in touch with their kids, befriend them and ask them about their day.
- Break rules with them-Strict parents may lead children to the verge of lying and deceiving. Rules are necessary to keep them in control , but stricter rules will urge them to break them. So make rules but fix a day when you break rules with them. This will keep your authority and friendliness in parallel.
- Family activities-Coping skills for kids are not a survival strategy with kids, but it’s a way to connect. Work-life makes you busy, and It’s until the weekend they get to see you. So make their patience worth it. Plan something out, Go for family dinners, Family picnics, long drives, a movie night, Ritual Game playing, some physical activities like cycling, trekking, cricket, etc. Decide a day for each activity beforehand so that your kid remains motivated throughout the week.
- Invite their friends over-If your child always looks tired, showing no interest in family activities , and hardly showing up for dinners. Then try to take help from their friends. Ask them to invite their friends over dinner or in family activities. This way , they will grow a friendship with you and start trusting you with their problems.
Dealing With Anger Issues
Some kids deal with anger issues, and they don’t know how to channelize it and often do things impulsively when angry. Coping skills like Punishing them is not healthy coping skills for kids. Anger is just an emotion; they are not big enough to hide their feelings or regulate their extreme emotions. So to help them out-
- Model good behavior-Anger issues could be genetic or sometimes comes in kids by learning from adults. So be a good role model. Control your anger issues if you want to control your kid’s anger. Teach them social, emotional, and ethical values.
- Read a Book to them at bedtime-Read stories of the good deeds of gentle people. Introduce to them the real-life characters who believed in non-violence. Show them how non-violence is one of the good coping skills for kids and make story-time a routine. This will keep them calm, engage their mind, and prevent bad temper.
Disappointment
- Teach children what can’t be controlled-Sometimes, kids get upset and disappointed for things , not their control. For example, when their favorite animal dies, they can get disappointed and depressed for a long time. So one of the best coping skills for kids who feel disappointed and get sad most often is to tell them the truth. Make them understand that life and death are not in our control. Teach kids what is in their control and what isn’t. help them move forward in life and learn some truths in life.
Depression
If you won’t learn coping skills for kids and remain ignorant, there are chances that your child, who is constantly feeling those extreme emotions, slip into depression. So keep up with your child. Try the coping skills for kids, and if nothing helps, then take experts’ help.
- Seek doctor’s help -Like physical health, mental health should be primary care too. So seek help from doctors when you get the slightest hint of it, and the coping skills for kids aren’t helping anymore.
Hints that he is feeling stressed and on the verge of slipping into depression could be, - a change in appetite
- anxiety attacks
- extreme mood swings
- lack of interest in family activities or school activities
- low self-confidence
First, try out talking. Gain his confidence in you, ask about his feelings. Listen to him. Don’t judge if the issue is trivial. Give them full support as you never know your kid might be at the edge of breaking. So always provide full confidence.
Unhealthy Coping Skills For Kids
- Avoiding situations is an unhealthy coping strategy. Not addressing the situation gives only temporary relief, and in the long run, it’s not workable. If you teach your kids to avoid and escaping situations, they will grow underconfident and will never be strong enough to face the world. and this could lead to depression and addiction problems
Teach them a healthy coping strategy of “talking out.” ask them to face the situation, not run from it. It will make them strong, confident, and ready for the world.
Coping Skills For Kids Workbook
It is a resource for parents who want their kids to learn to cope and understand their Behavior. This workbook is like a primer on cognitive Behavioral therapy, through which parents can teach their kids to reframe their cognitive skills and feel calmer and in control.
The kids’ Coping skills include 75 coping skills for kids to try; it has 20 printable worksheets, related YouTube videos, and Website information for Parents to follow.
Just Keep Up With Your Child
Dealing with kids isn’t a cakewalk, but things could get easier if you focus on healthy coping strategies. New parents must learn healthy coping skills for kids, be prepared and note down above focused coping skills for dealing with their growing child.
Any information found on the site does not constitute legal or medical advice. Should you face health issues, please visit your doctor to get yourself diagnosed. Icy Health offers expert opinions and advice for informational purposes only. This is not a substitute for professional medical advice.
