Learning healthy coping skills for kids is an appropriate emotional management skill that is especially important for children. It is critical to teach kids coping techniques that will allow them to control stress and anxiety, calm down, and cheer themselves up. In this article you will learn coping skills for kids that are ideal for children. Children need to learn healthy coping skills and how to use these skills to feel good.
Learn which coping skills are ideal for children and how to teach them appropriate coping strategies. Coping skills are vital to the mental health of children because they help kids regulate their emotions. During difficult circumstances, kids who understand how to regulate their emotions will avoid unhealthy coping strategies such as drug use and avoidance. Learn more about teenage mental health here.
Healthy coping skills for kids are twofold. Coping skills can be emotionally focused or problem focused. Emotion-focused coping strategies assist children in dealing with their emotions, which will reduce stress. These emotional regulation skills are required for instances where children cannot modify the situation. Problem-focused coping methods involve taking action to change the situation. These abilities can be beneficial when a young person has some power over the situation.
Emotion-focused coping skills include naming your emotions, managing your body’s response to the stimuli, and seeking alternate healthy outlets such as writing. Emotion-focused coping skills involve doing something that provides temporary distraction so that they can return to the problem when they are calmer. The following are some good emotion-focused coping strategies for children:
Name the feeling. Simply saying, “I’m sad,” or “I’m worried,” might lessen the intensity of unpleasant feelings. Provide children with the language they need to express their emotions, as they may not know the words to describe how they are feeling. You can look at “feeling faces” posters, or a list of feeling words. Then, when they’re dealing with a difficult emotion, ask them to speak their feelings.
Learn breathing exercises to calm yourself. A few slow, deep breaths may help children calm their minds and bodies. One breathing technique to teach children is to encourage them to take “bubble breaths.” Tell them to inhale deeply with their nose and exhale gently through their lips, as if they were blowing a bubble with a wand.
Exercise daily. Exercise can help kids release excess energy when they’re stressed or anxious. Exercise can improve their mood when they’re unhappy. Strength-building exercises and cardiovascular workouts such as fast walking or bicycling can be effective in helping children regulate their emotions and improve their mood. Encourage your children to engage in physical activities while they are dealing with challenging emotions or situations. Soon, going for a walk will eventually become a healthy habit that will help them cope with life’s problems.
Find a creative outlet. If your child enjoys painting or drawing, coloring in a coloring book, sculpting with clay, or making collages, art can be effective coping skills for kids. If this healthy coping skill works for your youngster, make sure to keep lots of art supplies available.
Play a game with your child. When children can’t stop worrying about something that happens at school or something they’re afraid of in the future, do something with them to take their minds off their worries. Go ahead and play a board game or card game with them, having this interaction with them will let them know they are supported. These activities will help them to think about other things instead of dwelling on the things that make them stressed or unhappy.
Learn positive self-talk. When children are upset, their self-talk tends to become negative and self-destructive. They may have thoughts such, “I’m just not good enough,” or “The other kids are going to talk to me.” Teach your children to speak kindly to themselves by asking, “What would you say to a friend who had this problem?” They’re likely to say something kind and supportive. Encourage your children to use the same kind comments toward themselves.
Problem Focused Coping Skills
Problem-focused coping skills are strategies that help reduce the source of stress. Sometimes it’s helpful to ask kids, “Do you think you need to change the situation or change how you feel about the situation?” Help kids recognize their options and that they can change things in their life.
Teach Your children to ask for help. When your child is having difficulty with something, ask, “Who could help you with this?” Help children understand that there are people that can help them. Let them know that there are people in their life that they can turn to ask for help such as their teacher, counselor, trusted family member. Ask your child to name a few people who could help. Kids who understand that it is acceptable to ask for support will feel empowered and less overwhelmed. These are healthy coping skills for kids that they will apply for the rest of their lives.
Engage in problem solving skills. There are many ways to tackle a problem. However, children may feel stuck and unaware of the options available to them. When your child is having difficulty with a problem, sit down and work out the solution together. Determine at least four or five potential answers to a problem and write them down. Then, help your child decide which one to try. Your children will gradually improve their problem-solving abilities. Developing excellent problem-solving abilities will benefit your children in the years ahead.
Make healthy coping skills a part of your life!
Healthy coping skills are important for everyone, but now is the time to teach kids healthy coping skills. Teaching your child healthy coping strategies can help them manage their stress and navigate life’s ups and downs with more ease. If you’re wondering how to incorporate coping skills into your child’s routine make these healthy coping skills apart of the whole family’s schedule. Contact Sobair Mental Health Counseling to learn more about healthy coping skills.