3 Min Read
Back to School Anxiety
With the rise in vaccination rate and reduced number of active COVID-19 cases, the pandemic restrictions are relaxing, kids are returning to school. Going back to school after 2 years is not easy. We do know how difficult it was to adapt and reschedule ourselves for the school reopening after the summer holidays. But this time is after months of a gap, these kids are getting back to school. In this gap, many children have fallen behind in their studies and also missed out on a big milestone because of the lack of peer interaction, which is crucial for social skill development. So it is not only stressful on safeguarding their health by following the safety norms, but also with the task to pace up in academics and socialising issues. Apart from academics, there are multiple other aspects like making new friends, learning new skills, handling middle school body harassment if the child is opting for residential schooling, dealing with away-from-home challenges, the list goes on.
Here area few tips for parents to help their children get back to school:
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Setting the routines: Start rescheduling the child’s biological clock of sleep, waking up, and meal times according to the school days. This should start a few weeks before school starts.
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Project a sense of confidence: The young minds might be loaded up with numerous apprehensive thoughts, so just ease them up by talking to them one-to-one, by reassuring them that you will help them get through it.
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Encourage them to share their emotions: Make sure you spend some time daily to share their fears and help them to identify and communicate their emotions.
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Prepare them for the possible adversities: In case of infection, provide them with all the necessary information for the possible measures of quarantine and break from school to avoid the probable mental trauma associated with it.
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Speak to other families: Find out from others about their back-to-school struggles and successes. Also, plan a few get-togethers with their peers to tune them in and familiarise them with the school environment.
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Reach out to the professionals for support: Talking to the child and taking steps for a smooth transition is important. But in case of any drastic change in the behaviour of the child, consult with the Psychiatrist in Mangalore at the earliest.
If your children are facing back-to-school anxiety, then visit a psychiatric hospital in Mangalore where they have trained specialists who have experience in diagnosing and treating children.
