Anxiety is our body’s natural response to stress, and just like adults, children experience these feelings. It is common for children to feel worried in certain situations like leaving a parent to go to school, worrying about friends or schoolwork.

Some children experience anxiety more intensely or frequently than other children. Like many ‘big emotions’, children can find it difficult to identify anxiety and how it presents can vary.

What are the signs and symptoms of anxiety in children?

avoiding situations that make them uncomfortable
emotional outbursts, tantrums and ‘meltdowns’
difficulty sleeping and fatigue

What can you do to help?

It’s important to remember that helping your child avoid situations they find challenging can lead to reinforcing their anxiety. Try not to dismiss or trivialise what your child is anxious about. Your role is to help them express, tolerate and manage the emotions.

Encourage your child to talk about their feelings and let you know when they get overwhelmed. It might help to explain these feelings are common – we all feel worried or scared sometimes. Consider setting time to specifically talk about their worries. Creating a ‘Worry Jar’ is a lovely concept to unpack their feelings and then give them an opportunity to ‘put them away’.

physical symptoms such as stomach aches
seeking reassurance often
being preoccupied or unable to concentrate

Encourage positive thinking and giving new things a try. Reinforce this by praising your child when they’ve done something they were worried about. Making a plan together for coping with anxious feelings in the future may help them feel more equipped.

If the anxious feelings don’t go away, seem more intense or frequent, or are significantly interfering with everyday life, it may be worthwhile seeking professional support.

For more ideas to help support you child, take a look at our recommended resources for children and parents.

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Anxiety

“The moment you doubt whether you can fly, you cease for ever to be able to do it.”

What are the signs and symptoms of anxiety in children?

What can you do to help?

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