It’s the most wonderful time of the year! Well, for some of us it is.  While most people look forward to the holidays as a time for catching up with family, and lavish meals, and creating and continuing traditions, for some the holidays can be a time of high stress and anxiety.  Typically, when thinking about those who experience difficulties during the holidays, we consider adults to be those most affected.  However, despite presents and the holiday spirit, children are also prone to feeling the chaos of the holidays.  

 

The holidays are known to cause stress in children due to unfamiliar environments when it comes to holiday parties, lots of people they may not know, gift giving and receiving, and sometimes traveling long distances.  Children thrive on routine and if there’s anything that tends to disrupt these routines it is the holidays.  So how can we prevent children from feeling the pressure of the holidays?

 

Experts suggest that the first step in reducing your child’s negative emotions about the holidays is by first managing your own stress as children can sense and follow the way that their caretakers are feeling.  The second most important step in keeping kids calm during the holidays is by trying to keep their routine as similar as possible to what i normally is throughout the year–getting plenty of sleep and eating enough.  Another great way to help kids cope with the stress of the holidays is setting expectations daily about what the routine is for the day and keeping them active to burn off that extra energy.

 

Let’s keep the spirit alive this holiday season both in ourselves and in our children!

 

Read the full article here

 

Marissa Robarge 

UConn KIDS Research Assistant

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