Back to School Stress

Back to school can always be a tricky time for some kids. For some they are excited and ready to get back in the classroom to see their friend but that isn’t the case for all kids. The change of routine and the uncertainty of their teacher, classmates and where to go can cause anxiety. And this year might be hitting kids harder than other years. The uncertainty of if school will be virtual, hybrid, or in person is adding another level of anxiety. You might be wondering why you child struggles year over year with the transition.

First of all transitions in general can be tricky for some individuals because our brain craves certainty. When we get into positions where our brain cannot anticipate what will happen next the brain will continue to scan until it finds something that is familiar. In the chiropractic world we normally call added info coming into the brain noise. Now noise can be great but when we have a lot of added noise coming into the brain it can cause more stress, which in turn creates more anxiety.

So why would one of your children struggle with the transitions but not the other? It really depends on how much “stress” or “noise” each kiddo can take in. Each individual can handle so much stress coming at them every day before the stress spills over and causes a symptom, like a meltdown, headaches, behavioral issues, ect. It comes down to how much the individual can handle before they get pushed over their threshold. And some children have a very little threshold and others can handle much more.

When one child has a lower threshold then it doesn’t take much for their symptoms to show up. There are different ways that we can look at calming down the body (aka the nervous system since it controls everything) to help decrease the noise.

Yoga/meditation/movement: These are all great ways to release some excess noise going on in the body. Meditation is amazing for kids to help them slow down their racing minds. Often times when I see children who struggle with ADHD they constantly want to be on a device because that is the only thing keeping up with their brain. Slowing down helps relieve some of that noise coming into their brain.

Decreasing sugar: Sugar is a stressor in the body and once we have a little our body craves more (which most people know). Often times during the summer we have more treats because we are celebrating summer…but decreasing the sugar can help with the anxiety aspect of change.

Essential Oils: Lavender, marjoram, and cedarwood are great ways to help calm down the nervous system. I usually recommend diffusing them but some parents will prefer to put a little lavender on the bottoms of their children’s feet with a carrier oil. I prefer to use DoTERRA or Young Living.

Adjustments: Chiropractic adjustments take tension off of their nervous system so that their brain and body can communicate properly. The nervous system coordinates and controls everything within the body...including behavior!

I always recommend getting a jump start of these before school starts! This helps set your kiddo up for success!