Photo via Pixabay by KHeinz
Adolescent anxiety can strike at a pretty young age, although it can be difficult to discern in a child who can’t express his emotions enough to tell you what’s going on. It can cause physical distress, depression, and mood swings that sometimes look like something else, meaning the anxiety goes undiagnosed. If your child has recently begun experiencing these changes--or if he’s been diagnosed with anxiety--and your family is about to undergo a big change, it’s important to know some ways to help minimize the triggers and help your child learn to cope with those feelings.
Often, kids don’t experience anxiety until they hit puberty; all those hormones and changes can cause quite an uproar mentally, emotionally, and physically. However, big changes such as a move, switching schools or teachers, a divorce, or a death in the family can lead to feelings of anxiety that may be expressed as anger or sadness.
One of the first steps in helping your child is to make sure he feels supported. Let him know that anxiety is common, even in young people, and that there are many ways you can work together to figure out how to deal with those feelings when they arrive.