The state of stress and its impact on adolescents and preschool children

Symptoms of stress in children

The human body reacts to external stimuli from birth. Stress can be short-term or long-term. In the first case, the body as a whole benefits. However, in the second, on the contrary, harm is almost inevitable.

Depending on the age, the symptoms of stress in a child can be completely different:

• Manifestation of the body's reaction in children under two years of age
  . Infants and toddlers express their stress by deteriorating sleep, appetite or complete refusal to eat, excessive tearfulness and irritability.
• Stress in preschool children (two to five years old)
  . It is expressed in a return to the previous age (regression): sucking a pacifier, urinary incontinence, requests to feed from a spoon, and others. Tearfulness may occur when circumstances change or new people appear. There is a decrease in general activity or, conversely, the manifestation of signs of hyperactivity (do not forget that hyperactivity is an independent mental disorder). An unreasonable increase in temperature and vomiting are noted. Very impressionable people may develop stuttering (temporary or permanent). The child becomes capricious, becomes more demanding, has frequent outbursts of anger at refusal to carry out instructions from adults, unmotivated aggression, nervousness for no apparent reason, and frequent mood swings (for the worse). There is also an excessive manifestation of children's fears (fear of the dark, loneliness, death), because of which the baby cannot sleep.
• Stress in a young schoolchild
  . During this period of development, fatigue may appear and nightmares begin to torment. The child often complains of nausea, headaches, pain in the heart, which may be accompanied by an increase in temperature, and unreasonable nausea. Parents note frequent cases of lies, age regression (begins to behave like younger children). Periodically, a desire to seek adventure arises, or, on the contrary, the student withdraws into himself, refuses to go for walks, avoids communicating with peers, and does not want to attend school. There is aggression towards other people, as well as low self-esteem, the desire to do everything so that the child is praised. An unreasonable feeling of fear, anxiety, deterioration of attention, memory, selective amnesia is possible (events that caused stress are forgotten). The child develops constant drowsiness or insomnia, the appetite may either worsen or, conversely, become excessively increased. Parents note with horror speech defects, nervous tics, mood swings, as well as long-term (several days) defiant behavior.

In addition to the above, it is common for children of all ages to acquire new habits due to stress.
For example, they may start biting nails or objects (pencils, pens, rulers), playing with their own hair (girls), scratching, picking their nose, and so on. With such an abundance of symptoms, it is extremely difficult for an ordinary person (parents, teachers, for example) to recognize stress in a child.
Often the signs are regarded as a manifestation of some disease, lack of upbringing, or character traits of the baby himself. An accurate diagnosis can only be made by a specialist based on the results of several interviews and psychological tests.

Taking care of your health

What problems might have arisen in recent months, how can we help children overcome them and avoid new difficulties in returning to normal life? RG talks about this with the chief researcher at the Institute of Developmental Physiology of the Russian Academy of Education, academician of the Russian Academy of Education, Doctor of Biological Sciences, author of numerous monographs and manuals for teachers and parents, Maryana Bezrukikh.

Maryana Mikhailovna, what were the main difficulties that parents and children faced during these months?

Maryana Bezrukikh: The period of self-isolation can be characterized as chronic and toxic stress, all factors of which act for a long time, comprehensively and systemically. This is, first of all, a factor of surprise - “stopping while running”, when all living conditions, regime, loads have changed dramatically - literally in one day. This required a quick adjustment from everyone. True, the first week coincided with the holidays for many children, but then online classes began, to which teachers abruptly joined, for which both the school and the children were completely unprepared. Our idea that these are “digital” children and that it is easier for them to work using electronic devices has turned out to be a myth. Yes, children play with gadgets en masse, but they learn using them only sporadically in both primary and secondary schools. Last year we conducted a study and found that only 20 percent of teachers use digital technologies in the teaching process, and only sporadically. Of course, it turned out to be easier for them to switch to a remote format. But everyone had to move. And this was another stress.

Do you mean the number of distance lessons?

Maryana Bezrukikh: According to sanitary standards, you can use a computer in lessons in an elementary school for no more than 15 minutes, in a primary school - no more than 20. But it turned out that the majority of children had three or four distance lessons, each lasting 30-40 minutes. This is an excessive burden. Plus, homework was also done using various electronic devices. But this was not the only thing that complicated the situation. Not all children have a desktop computer or laptop, and, as observations show, about half of them used smartphones. And this is completely unacceptable! Firstly, they have strong electromagnetic radiation, and secondly, they have high static voltage and strain on vision. It is difficult for children to concentrate when the teacher’s face is so close and the interaction distance is broken, that is, a very tense psychological situation arises. And this “teaching with torment” lasted almost a month and a half. But at the same time, this is an experience that should be carefully analyzed by everyone - doctors, physiologists, psychologists, teachers - in order to understand why it was so difficult. So that, if necessary, you do not repeat mistakes and work more efficiently - at least not on a daily basis.

How did the stressful situation affect the behavior of children and adults?

Maryana Bezrukikh: The stress was aggravated by the situation of uncertainty. The children could not understand her, and the parents could not explain anything and experienced the same severe stress. Plus, with rare exceptions, there is a sharp restriction of physical activity and habitual contacts, and this is also a factor that worsens both the physical and mental health of children. And all stages of the reaction to stress were very vivid. First, the mobilization stage, when everyone decided that there would be a lot of free time and we would redo all our affairs. A week later it turned out that for some reason I didn’t have the strength to do this. Then there was a period of adaptation - it seemed that we had adapted, there was hope that everything would end soon. But in recent weeks, according to letters from parents and according to the observations of my colleagues in other countries who were quarantined before us, it turns out that the fifth or sixth week is the beginning of the manifestation of unfavorable indicators that characterize a breakdown in adaptation.

What specific manifestations of stress occur in children?

Maryana Bezrukikh: Sleep disturbance, irritability, complaints of headache, abdominal pain, nausea, etc. This is a sharp change in mood, especially among teenagers, when, as some parents write, they simply go into another room and scream loudly there. Apparently, negative energy accumulates, you want to somehow discharge yourself, and the child does not find options for discharge: someone cries, someone screams, someone withdraws into themselves, and someone, on the contrary, becomes overly excitable. But adults also complain of depression, severe irritability and the need for some kind of outburst of emotions. And if an adult does not regulate himself well, and children generally do not regulate themselves well simply because of their age, then conflicts, quarrels, etc. are inevitable.

But conflicts in families also arise in normal times; how are they different now?

Maryana Bezrukikh: On the part of parents, the situation is complicated by the need to monitor the learning process, help children, and sometimes study with the child - this is an additional burden. After all, many of them work remotely all day. The situation has exacerbated problems that were already present in families: not all parents have good contact with their children or know how to effectively interact with them.

Will the gradual lifting of restrictive measures help somehow resolve conflicts?

Maryana Bezrukikh: Coming out of self-isolation will be no less difficult. At first glance, it seems that tomorrow the quarantine will be lifted, everyone will be allowed to walk, run, jump, go to the park or to see friends. But we need to prepare our children that a wide range of restrictions will remain for now. And they won’t go out to hang out tomorrow, they won’t be able to make up for the entire deficit in physical activity. This is especially important for parents of teenagers to understand, because they themselves have little control over themselves. They will definitely have a desire to break free, play sports, for example, run a couple of laps, etc. But this age is different in that functional disorders of the cardiovascular and respiratory systems may occur. And high stress and decreased physical activity during the period of self-isolation can be a provocateur of these changes. Therefore, it’s definitely not worth starting to engage in intensive sports right away. Loads need to be increased gradually - both their intensity and duration - and monitor your functional state. Children should have been taught at school how to monitor the condition of their body using their pulse. If not, then parents can teach them this themselves, or even better, supervise their classes and study with them. Distribute physical activity throughout the day - maybe into several parts of 15-20 minutes with a gradual increase.

Is it necessary to strictly adhere to the usual daily routine or can some relaxations be given now?

Maryana Bezrukikh: Some easing is definitely necessary. Many parents write that teenagers now go to bed during the day - and this is evidence of very high stress. It is worth allowing them to sleep longer, maybe lie down during the day. They are now in a state of latent excitement, and as soon as some of the restrictions are lifted, this excitement will manifest itself. And sleep restores, allows you to calm down, and this is very good.

Should we pay special attention to children’s nutrition during this period?

Maryana Bezrukikh: It is important that it be fractional; experts recommend five meals a day: you need vitamins, fish, meat, dairy products. Of course, different families have different habits and opportunities, but, nevertheless, it is important that the child eats vegetables, fruits, and greens.

But many children do not like vegetables and greens.

Maryana Bezrukikh: The example of parents is very important both always and during self-isolation. If it is customary in the family to eat fresh salads and herbs, then the children will too. But if the mother says: “I can’t chew this grass,” then the child definitely won’t. And it is very advisable not to consume a lot of carbohydrates - in the form of cookies, buns, sweets, etc.

But what about the “comforting” candy, a piece of chocolate?

Maryana Bezrukikh: A piece of chocolate won’t hurt at all, especially dark chocolate, and candy too, if it’s not a whole vase.

Many children yearn for hamburgers and ice cream.

Maryana Bezrukikh: It’s not difficult to make a burger at home. The attitude and attitude with which you take your child to such institutions is of great importance. If it’s just because you wanted to eat a hamburger, that’s one thing. And if that hike is a reward for a well-finished quarter, that’s not a good setup. In our country, unfortunately, food is often a reward. If the child is used to this as a gift or reward, this is very bad. Because when he has the opportunity to go and eat all this as much as he wants, it will be very difficult to restrain him. And recently, such a “reward” has been a tablet or smartphone. Parents do not understand that in this way they form an addiction, and in children it forms very quickly.

Hamburger addiction is not a good thing, but what about smartphone addiction?

Maryana Bezrukikh: This is a more serious situation. Parents often do not understand why a child throws a tantrum when his smartphone is taken away as punishment. Although they themselves gave him this gadget when he was one and a half years old, so that he would calm down and not interfere. In self-isolation, this situation only gets worse, because it’s one thing when a child is in kindergarten all day, and another thing when he’s nearby all day, disturbing adults, and something needs to be done so that he doesn’t interfere. Therefore, many children had free access to gadgets for two months. And now parents will either have to deal with this, or the dependence will only grow. Psychologists generally do not recommend giving gadgets to a child under 4 years old, and then limiting the time they use them and teaching them how to use them correctly and monitor the content. When a child goes to school, he will need a computer for work. But even here control is needed - it is not recommended that the computer be in the child’s room. It should be within the access zone of adults, and when passing by, you should always look at what the child is doing there and also limit the time it is used.

This is, frankly speaking, a difficult task.

Maryana Bezrukikh: I understand parents and how difficult and uncomfortable it is for them to implement all these recommendations in practice, but what to do? The situation now is extraordinary, but we will have to get out of it somehow. As an option, do not ban the computer or smartphone, but replace it with something else - interesting things to do, interaction with it.

What should you do if your child’s behavior is now alarming due to unusual reactions and negative emotions?

Maryana Bezrukikh: The way out of the current situation should relieve these manifestations of stress. Now I would not recommend worrying about this and looking for a specialist for online consultation. But as soon as they are allowed to go out to the parks and for a walk, it makes sense to give yourself and your children some evening relaxation - take a quiet walk for about 40 minutes, maybe do a series of breathing exercises, look at the stars, talk about something pleasant. And at home, take a warm shower, prepare a warm drink - a soothing herbal hour, a glass of warm milk with a spoonful of honey, if there are no allergies. Our usually rigid instruction: “or sleep, close the door, turn off the light” does not work in this situation. Young children calm down if an adult can give them a gentle, relaxing massage to help relieve tension. By the way, this is very relaxing even for adults.

What about the evening “hugs” often recommended by psychologists?

Maryana Bezrukikh: It depends on what is accepted in the family. There is a fairly large group of children - with autism spectrum disorders, with attention deficit disorder, some children with neurotic disorders - who do not really like tactile contact, especially sharp ones. But every parent knows their child best and can choose the option that he likes.

What to do if the atmosphere in the family becomes tense, conflicts and dissatisfaction with each other begin to arise? Maybe they should be discussed?

Maryana Bezrukikh: If you talk to a child and he talks to adults, then, of course, you can discuss everything. But the most important thing at this stage is to slightly reduce the usual demands on the child (that he still has to finish learning something, write, etc.). And for two months, allow yourself to be imperfect parents, and your child to be imperfect too. The most difficult stage of self-isolation is given to perfectionists and excellent children. If there are such people in one family, then they torture each other and themselves. After the restrictions are eased, you just need to be outside more, take a walk, gradually increase physical activity, find reasons for positive emotions, and allow the child to do what he really wants. Let him realize his creative impulses and have fun. And if he dreamed of getting a bicycle or a scooter, give him such a gift, if possible. Positive emotions are vital to him.

What lessons should we, parents, learn from the difficult period of self-isolation?

Maryana Bezrukikh: You shouldn’t evaluate this time only negatively. In fact, this is a test for all of us - for creativity, flexibility, and decision-making in non-standard situations. And coming out of self-isolation will also be a test. It will be great if we understand that our brain loves new, complex and non-standard tasks, and we all unexpectedly received such a task. If we evaluate self-isolation from this point of view, we will find many positive aspects in it. And this will give us the strength to find new non-standard and effective solutions even after the end of the current period.

Causes of stress in a child

Children, due to the fact that their psyche is still extremely tender and their life experience is negligible, are much more impressed than adults by seemingly insignificant events.
Potential causes of stress in children are numerous:

1. Sudden change in daily routine
   . For example, the baby is used to going to bed whenever he wants, and waking up quite late. And suddenly he needs to get up two or three hours earlier in order to get to kindergarten on time.
2. Change of environment
   . The same kindergarten or school means new faces of adults who are also in charge, the need to get along in a team and obey its laws, and so on.
3. Changing the usual environment
   . Change of residence for the whole family and moving to a new, unfamiliar apartment, while the child was very comfortable in the old place.
4. Separation
   . Separation for a long or even short period from family, friends and relatives.
5. Loss or death of a pet
   . Some children even react sharply to the death of an aquarium fish or houseplant.
6. Impact of media and computer technology
   . Watching TV shows, movies, Internet content that is not intended for a specific age (scenes of violence, murder, even scenes of an erotic and sexual nature). Information can be misinterpreted and perceived as bad. The situation can be aggravated by a sharp shout or other negative reaction from adults whom the child “caught” during intimate communication or watching an erotic video. This also includes listening to news about events in the country and in the world (wars, natural disasters, accidents). Too much passion for computer games, especially those that are more or less associated with aggression and violence.
7. Human influence
   . Quite often, the stressful state of adults can be transmitted to children. Even in the womb, mothers can observe changes in the baby’s behavior when her mood changes.
8. Environmental stresses
   . That is, a sharp change in climate, changes in weather conditions, a decrease in the quality of food, water and air. Children, like adults, can be weather dependent. This is especially often noticed by parents of babies under one year old, when they suddenly begin to be capricious, refuse to eat, or often wake up at night during the full moon, for example.
9. Exposure from the environment
   . Since all processes in the human body, including the central nervous system, are chains of chemical reactions, the causes of stress in a child can be toxic substances in the air and water, poisoning, and radiation.

Manifestation of stress in an infant

Even the youngest children are able to express their feelings. And stress in children is a special reaction to something they don’t like. We analyze the causes and consequences of stress reactions in infancy and psychological techniques to calm both the child and the mother. Consulting psychotherapist Dmitry Vladimirovich Anokhin.

— Dmitry Vladimirovich, what can cause stress in newborns?

- Let's first understand what stress is in an adult. What is commonly referred to as stress is intense overexertion that interferes with our healthy functioning.

It is at this moment that a stressful state arises, which also corresponds to a certain dominant in the psyche: it draws away all mental energy, and at the same time we lose strength and peace. As for stress in infants, its mechanisms are in many ways the same as in adults, just the stress factors are different.

- What does this mean for them?

— For a child, the main sources of stress are factors that are related to the state of his health, how and what he is fed, how he is cared for and, of course, to a large extent, with the condition and attitude of his mother towards him.

Mother and child have a very deep connection, which is formed during pregnancy, as well as after birth, during breastfeeding, so the mother’s condition will be a direct source of potential stress for the child.

At the moment when the baby begins to feed, he has a basic trust in the world, and it is very important what the mother’s condition is in the first moments of breastfeeding. However, during pregnancy there are many situations that can affect children's sensitivity to certain stress factors in the future. But this is a slightly different topic.

Postpartum stress in a child is often associated with breastfeeding.

Therefore, you need to pay attention to what the connection between mother and baby is like. The condition, mood, thoughts of the mother are important, as well as whether she can switch from some life situations to giving her attention, sensitivity and care to the child.

— How does stress manifest itself in infants? Can a mother separate signs of stress from other childhood problems without the help of a doctor?

— Some small changes occur every week in young children. The mother gets used to one behavior of the child, but he grows and something changes every day. Not all of these changes are associated with some pathologies, diseases and stress. But very responsible parents are tempted to see a problem in everything, although this may simply be the natural behavior of their baby. What you should definitely pay attention to in order to seriously think about taking the necessary measures is the symptoms of stress in infants.

Signs of stress in a child:

• crying becomes different in nature, unnatural, alarming;
• notes that are unusual for a child appear in the intonation, as if he is in pain;
• the baby no longer calms down after feeding as before;
• the child suddenly stops eating, does not take the breast or pacifier with food;
• the usual pattern of sleep and wakefulness is disrupted, the child may be lethargic and sleep all the time - or cannot fall asleep, as if something is disturbing him.

— In the psychologist’s opinion, why does a child experience stress?

— Stress in a child can be of different nature.

- Only when medical factors are completely excluded can we talk about exclusively psychological ones, although most often they are closely interrelated.

In any case, here and now it is important to maintain an even state in order to make informed decisions, keeping the psychological climate as harmonious as possible - this will allow you to act in a timely and confident manner in any negative scenario, solving real problems and not creating new ones.

Routine examinations of the baby by a pediatrician will help prevent the situation from escalating and succumbing to negative moods, who, if necessary, will refer you to specialized specialists, including a pediatric neurologist.

— Usually parents intuitively understand that something in the family or relationship is not going so smoothly. Does this somehow affect the child’s well-being?

— Mothers usually sense their children’s mood well, because they have a special psychological connection with their children, so maternal intuition must be taken into account. And, of course, one cannot ignore the general emotional state of a woman. So if doctors say that everything is fine, but the woman is worried, it is important to understand the cause of this condition and do something about it, since the anxiety is passed on to the baby. A psychogenic problem, like a medical one, must be carefully dealt with; it cannot be ignored and hope that everything will return to normal and disappear somewhere.

— How does stress affect a child?

— The influence of stress is destructive to children's health. For example, if there are problems with lactation, the baby will cry at the breast, he may become thin and lose weight. A similar physiological reason creates emotional stress in both mother and baby, because our body and psyche are one whole. Simply put, the state of our body affects the psyche, and the state of the psyche affects the body.

Stress at an early age can affect the future not only on health, but also on how happy and easy a person will live.

Strong experiences can lead to the formation of chronic diseases, deviations in physical development, and in the natural development of adaptive functions of the psyche, which determine the basic level of trust in the world and the ability to psychologically cope with various everyday difficulties.

— Can a baby’s stress be a consequence of factors not related to the mother? How can you help your child cope with stress in this case?

— Of course, such situations happen. For example, when a child is physically injured, left not with his mother, but with other family members, or when the child develops at his own pace. But still, if we are talking about how to cope with stress in a child, then the role of the mother or the one who performs this role is paramount. The little man cannot speak or respond yet. The only contact that he has and that is important for him during this period is his mother, this is how nature works. This is important to understand and take into account. To relieve stress, the child can be given sedatives or given a special massage, but the mother’s psychological state will still affect him, and ultimately something will still have to be done about it.

— That is, the mother’s peace of mind is a key factor in the healthy development of the child.

— There is such a well-known formula “happy mother - happy child.” Therefore, a woman’s responsibility for her calm state is extremely important, as is the responsibility of her immediate environment for the comfort of mother and baby.

The help and sincere participation of loved ones in caring for the mother and small child can reduce the stress load.

“The father’s participation in this process is often lost.

— The role of the father is very important. It is correct if he takes part in caring for the baby. There are many studies on this topic that show that in this case the stress level of mother and child is much lower. If for some reason your father is not around, then you should ask for help from other relatives: grandparents, brothers and sisters.

Eg,

The mother feeds the baby, but someone else can rock him to sleep. By the way, men have a higher body surface temperature than women, and this can become an additional calming factor for the baby. And mom will feel calmer when someone close to her takes the extra burden off her.

If a mother experiences tension (from fatigue, worries not related to the child), she needs to learn how to relieve it. A calm mother can better assess the situation and better understand what is really happening and calm the baby.

Ideally, a mother should try to mentally put herself in the child’s place, look at the world around him through his eyes, and with his body feel where the tension is and what is causing it. But at this moment, the mother herself should already be calm, otherwise she will begin to project her stress onto the child, and this can only create unnecessary problems.

- But how to find this peace?

- When a child cries and does not sleep, he attracts all the attention to himself, the mother thinks only about him, cannot be distracted - this causes her internal tension and stress level to increase. Even if, while doing something else, the mother constantly thinks about the child and is very worried about him, this is an indicator that she needs to reduce her stress level. The onset of stress will additionally affect the composition of milk and the health of the baby. Therefore, the first thing is to try to calm down.

How to help yourself and your child with stress

- The main thing is to make sure that when you perform all these simple actions, your emotional state becomes more even or even neutral compared to what it was before you started practicing. It is important to choose exercises that will be effective for you. Actions with minimal time and effort will help you switch from negativity and tension to a neutral, balanced state. Simple exercises shift attention from stressful thoughts about difficulties, provide an opportunity not only to take a break, but also to take a fresh look at the situation, which is often very important, especially when it is not clear what to do.

Two or three minutes are not critical, but they are enough to distract yourself and restore your state. Regaining your calm is more important than trying to solve problems in a stressful manner. It is very important to get out of the internal negative process, from your painful thoughts and pay attention to what is happening around, what is happening to the child.

— Is it true that children react to everything very quickly?

“If a mother changes something in her condition, pays attention to the child, begins to feed him, stroke him, calm him down, this gives a quick effect. This means that you don’t have to turn to anyone, mom can handle everything, everything is fine. If your child's behavior still seems strange and what used to help calm him no longer works, medical attention is needed.

In an unclear and difficult situation, it is better to contact a specialist (pediatrician or psychotherapist) and not self-medicate or abuse folk remedies.

— Many experts are convinced that a crying baby should not be put to the breast if little time has passed since feeding. Is it so?

“There is a point of view among doctors that if a mother very quickly obeys the child and immediately responds to his demands, then he allegedly becomes capricious and very demanding. However, everything is individual, because children have different temperaments. One baby must be approached immediately on demand, since he only worries when he wants to eat, and somewhere in the interaction between mother and child, some unhealthy situation has already formed, and if you start solving the problem through physical restrictions in feeding, everything can only get worse. Here you should also work first of all with your mother in order to first understand what is really happening.

— Not only attention is important to a child, but also its quality. And if you are stressed, are you not happy with yourself, what are you broadcasting to your child in this case? What will he return to you in the future?

— How does staying indoors with a small child for a long time affect stress?

• Impact on the child

— The situation is interesting because many young families do not walk much in open space and place a stroller with a sleeping child on the balcony. For a newborn, this situation will not be problematic. But an older child has a greater need for movement, so he needs help to be fully active during the day, to give an outlet for accumulated energy. If he has a good walk and plays, then his free energy will be spent and he will want to rest, sleep, and eat instead of being capricious.

• Impact on mom and dad

— As for the parents, the story is a little different. If mom and dad or other adults surrounding the child spent a lot of time outside the home before his birth, and with his appearance they began to sit within four walls, then, of course, they may have some kind of stressful experiences about this, which, Perhaps they will be passed on to the baby. The general level of aggression will begin to increase, since household members will unwittingly violate each other’s boundaries, and all this will also affect the child. It is important to look for unique solutions in each specific case.

It often happens that before giving birth, the mother was very active, ran daily, was the center of attention in society, and maternity leave led to her social isolation. The child is still very small, and his presence in itself is an additional and unexpected stress, because it will not be possible to quickly return to the usual way of life. And the child may begin to irritate such a mother, which in turn will affect his health, since the woman will be depressed or overly aggressive all the time. Something needs to be done about this too, but this goes beyond simply relieving stress. This requires comprehensive work with a psychologist or psychotherapist.

If we want to reduce stress in a small child to a minimum, then it is important to understand that his whole life depends primarily on his mother. The mother’s attitude towards the child, her attitude towards herself and the attitude of others towards her will be a priority in the psychological well-being of the family and the baby.

To overcome stress, it is important for a mother to realize that it exists, that for some reason excessive stress occurs and all attention and strength are spent in this direction. Remember that we relieve stress in order to regain strength and the ability to correct the situation, and not in order to stop solving problems. Sometimes you just need a few minutes to recuperate and switch your state to a calmer mode using the simplest actions suggested in this article. All problems that arise with a child should, if possible, be thought through and solved in a balanced state - then it will be possible to understand the causes of stress and find the strength to overcome it.

Psychotherapist Dmitry Vladimirovich Anokhin

*The ideal food for an infant is mother's milk. WHO recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first 6 months. MAMAKO® supports this recommendation. Before introducing new foods into your baby’s diet, consult a specialist.

Consequences of stress in children

As already mentioned, stress is a natural and inevitable reaction of the body, which to some extent adapts it to new conditions. Thus, the body itself tries to survive. However, prolonged stay in this state will inevitably have negative consequences for the entire holistic biological system.

Negative consequences

Most stress has a negative imprint. This often manifests itself as follows:

• The tendency to diseases increases
  . The risk of cardiovascular disease increases fourfold. From 10% to 25% of children, when exposed to stress for a long time, suffer from exacerbation of chronic diseases of internal organs. Even a healthy child often develops gastritis and other problems of the digestive system due to nervousness. The immune system is weakened, and as a result, the risk of infectious diseases increases.
• Sleep is disturbed
  . Even after short-term stress, for example, insomnia may occur during preparation or after passing exams. As for children under 5 years of age, their condition manifests itself with frequent getting up in the middle of the night, a desire to sleep with their parents, and also a requirement to leave the light on in the room.
• Psychological problems appear
  . The development of depression, an increased risk of suicide, which is especially pronounced in adolescent children.
• Problems with food and its absorption
  . Often, children living in regular stress experience excess weight (with an increase in appetite) or, conversely, a catastrophic decrease in weight (when there is no appetite). In the first case, the child “eats” his problems, in the second he is so depressed that his body simply refuses to accept food.
• When exposed to stress for a long time, the body's reactions become dulled
  . The hormones adrenaline and cortisol cease to be released in sufficient quantities. As a result, the child will not be able to react correctly in an extreme situation. In a milder version, it may look like failing an exam when fully prepared. In sports, this condition is referred to as “burnt out.”

Positive consequences

The consequences of child stress can also be positive.
Usually they are short-term and do not cause as deep damage to the psyche as negative ones. Nature has thus taken care of developing protective reactions to external stimuli, which allows for faster adaptation. For example, hardening the entire body through dousing is based on this. During sports training, a stressful state allows you to develop the necessary conditioned reflexes. The psyche is strengthened, and it becomes possible to quickly make decisions in emergency situations.

Positive stress occurs not only under the influence of fear or shock from a change in the usual state, but even under an unexpected positive event. For example, if the father returned to the child from a business trip earlier.

Important! After positive stress, the child’s body quickly recovers, and in a similar situation there will no longer be such a violent reaction.

Child psychology

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We've all read articles about the negative effects of stress on the body, watched programs about the "silent killer," and complained to friends and family about how many stressors we have in our lives. Although we know that stress can lead to serious illnesses such as ulcers and hypertension in adults, we do not associate these illnesses with children. However, research shows that children who are chronically stressed suffer just as much from it—they are at risk for severe cognitive impairment because their brains are not yet fully developed.

Old reaction to new problems

To get an idea of ​​what our children are up against, it helps to understand the physiological effects of stress on the brain. When a child experiences stress, the hypothalamus (a section in the diencephalon) releases a hormone that rushes to the pituitary gland. The pituitary gland produces another hormone, which travels through the circulatory system to the adrenal glands. The adrenal glands synthesize adrenaline and cortisol. Adrenaline speeds up the baby's heart rate and increases blood pressure. Cortisol increases blood sugar levels, increases muscle strength, memory efficiency, and increases pain threshold.

So what's wrong with that, you ask? Don't high memory efficiency and an increased pain threshold help children learn faster and better? Not at all. Our fight, flight or freeze response to stress is reserved for life-or-death situations in which seconds count. Unfortunately, modern problems and challenges - a perfect example of which is eleven years of schooling - are not solved so quickly. They require long-term focus and mental toughness, qualities that stress can destabilize.

Is your child experiencing chronic stress?

What happens when the brain is under stress (not just for a few seconds, but year after year)? Stress hormones gradually accumulate in the body. Research shows that cortisol, in particular, damages the brain if it lingers for long periods of time. When laboratory rats were injected with rat cortisol over a period of several weeks, it killed brain cells in their hypothalamus, leaving the animals depressed, anxious, fearful, immature, overly demanding, and unable to learn new behaviors (e.g., fixated on "rat racing" ).

Chronic stress affects the brain in other ways

Scientists list several types of dysfunction in the brain exposed to chronic stress: hippocampal neurons stop functioning properly, neural networks are disconnected, and the production of new neurons slows down. Simply put, the brain, under the influence of chronic stress, has difficulty learning new material and retaining it in memory.

One study showed that long-term stress dries out hippocampal dendrites (the processes of nerve cells that receive signals from other neurons), reducing their length and number of branches. Dendrites provide a pathway into the brain for new learning, and damage to the hippocampus (a key area for memory functioning) leads directly to learning disabilities.

How different types of stress affect a child

None of this benefits the adult brain, but the rapidly developing child's brain, with its millions of dendrites, is especially susceptible to the damaging effects of cortisol. Numerous studies have shown that children who are exposed to extreme stressful situations, such as domestic violence or corporal punishment, have significantly lower IQs than children who are not exposed to emotional trauma.

But new research has found that it's not just extreme types of stress that can affect children's ability to learn and think. Scientists have concluded that children who are exposed to “domestic chaos” have lower IQs and higher rates of behavioral problems. Children who were verbally abused by their mothers were also found to have poorer language skills and less white matter in their brains. (White matter influences learning by coordinating connections between different parts of the brain.)

Stress: you can get it

Is it enough for parents to keep their home tidy, avoid spanking their children (and other corporal punishment), and refrain from verbal abuse to reduce stressors? This is certainly desirable, but experts suggest that all of the above may not be enough to protect children from brain damage associated with stress at home. Parents' stress levels can affect children's cognitive abilities, which is why internal stress is contagious. Scientists say that in extreme conditions, parental stress can weaken a child's brain development.

Emotional stability at home is the most significant determinant of educational success. If you want your child to get into the most prestigious university, go home and show love to your spouse.

Parents can do their best to protect their children from stress, but sometimes life's circumstances and twists of fate make stress unavoidable. Fortunately, experts say parents don't need to put their children in a stress-free cocoon.

Can stress be treated with other stress?

Not all types of stress are bad. The learning process itself is also stressful for the brain, but it can be positive and support healthy neuronal development and synapse formation. Scientists advise parents to expose children to the “right” types of stress and teach them to cope with potentially harmful types.

It's also important to note that stress-related brain damage in children may not be permanent. The effects of stress are not “brain damage,” but rather a reversible or treatable phenomenon.

A powerful antidote

How to effectively deal with stress? All experts are unanimous on one thing. Exercise is great medicine. Research has found that physical activity stimulates hippocampal development, and group exercise (team sports such as football and tag games) promotes neuronal growth.

Exercise is the best thing children can do to combat stress. Exercise promotes the growth of new neurons, tolerance and resistance to psychological trauma and stress. Regular physical activity is one of the ways to increase resistance and resistance to stress. Overall, exercise in all its myriad forms remains the most effective means of relieving internal tension.

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Related links:

• ▶ How to help your child cope with stress
• ▶ How to help a teenager cope with stress
• ▶ Gender differences in stress response
• ▶ Raising psychologically stable children
• ▶ More articles about child psychology

Child development 07/21/2016

Methods for treating stress in a child

Only a specialist can determine the presence of a stressful condition.
He should also prescribe treatment for children’s stress, which is always comprehensive. Typically, the first thing a doctor recommends is to eliminate the source of the condition. In most cases, this gives, although not instantaneous, positive results. There is no point in fighting positive stress, since the body copes well on its own. Often, in parallel with eliminating the source, medications such as tincture of valerian or motherwort are prescribed, which have a calming effect. The doctor may prescribe the use of nootropic drugs that improve metabolic processes in the brain.

In addition, massages of the collar area, electric sleep, pine baths or baths with sea salt are used. Vitamins are prescribed without fail (B-complex is a prerogative). It is strongly recommended to adhere to sleep patterns, nutrition, and in some cases diet, which implies the exclusion of foods that provoke stimulation of the nervous system.

Psychocorrection of the behavior of children, as well as adults from the immediate environment (parents, guardians, grandparents) is carried out under the supervision of a psychologist.

Note! It must be remembered that it is more difficult to relieve stress in a child than to prevent its occurrence.

It is important to see not only the fact of emotional experience itself, but also to establish its cause.

The first encounter with the social environment can be stressful for a child. Of course, the most common cause of stress in children is entering kindergarten, school, and in our case, placing the child in an orphanage. In these situations, the child experiences stress because he is in a new, unusual environment, there are no parents nearby, the need to be separated from loved ones, friends, changes have occurred in the usual course of life, having no experience communicating with peers or this experience is insignificant, the child is forced to spend hours in their environment, the need to comply with the regime.

Children begin to understand that someone is smarter, someone is stronger, and someone is more beautiful than them, and this is a serious psychological burden for them. Bullying and insults at school top the list of causes of childhood stress. The main “causative agent” of stress in schoolchildren is teachers and their demands. Every tenth child is afraid of them.

The cause of childhood stress at any age can be a major family event, such as divorce, the birth of another child, moving to another place of residence or moving to a new school, and of course the loss of parents, loved ones, or a pet.

In addition, the cause of stress in children can be internal conflict, an overabundance of extracurricular activities, homework and tests, conflicts with other children, failure or competition in studies, visiting the hospital, watching a television program containing any negative information, fear of loneliness, coercion , onset of puberty, lack of parental care or overcontrol; disruption of intrafamily communication, lack of warmth, antagonism between family members; being raised by a mentally ill or disabled parent; cruelty, sexual abuse, etc.

The most harmful psychosocial stressors for children are: staying in a 24-hour nursery, orphanage, hospital or sanatorium; isolation from family; improper upbringing, rejection or hostility from peers or adults, etc. Stress in children can also be caused by global factors: war, environmental and industrial disasters, natural disasters (explosions, fires, earthquakes, floods).

Children are most susceptible to negative influences in socially isolated families with poor interpersonal connections; in families experiencing stress due to a difficult financial situation, poverty, poor living conditions;

in single-parent families;

in families with immature, hyper-emotional parents;

in families with mental illness, antisocial behavior, alcohol or drug addiction in any of the members;

in families where inadequate parenting methods are used towards the child.

In addition, children can also experience stressors in an educational institution: irrational lifestyle, unreasonable restriction of children’s freedom, poor nutrition and poor organization, improper organization of sleep and rest, authoritarian style of communication between adults and children in the absence of attention and care for them, intellectual and physical overload, unfavorable relationships with peers, etc.

Don't forget about traditional childhood fears. They, according to psychologists, can also cause stress. We are talking, first of all, about the child’s instinctive fear of being left alone. The desire to always be with your family is inherent in the subconscious of every child. There is no need to scare your child by saying that you will send him to an orphanage if he does not obey. These innocent, from the point of view of adults, threats are perceived extremely acutely by children and, under certain circumstances, they can cause deep stress. The consequences of this stress can often poison their entire subsequent lives.

Professor David Elkind, an American researcher in the field of child psychology, created a scale of childhood stress depending on the events that children encounter during one year. It is interesting to note that, just like in adults, many of the events are regarded by children as positive and joyful, but this does not stop them from being stressful, since they entail a violation of stability.

David Elkind Childhood Stressors Scale

If within one year a child gains in total:

• less than 150 points - he has a medium level of stress.
• from 150 to 300 points - he is at risk of showing symptoms of stress;
• more than 300 points - he may have serious health or behavioral problems due to stress

How to avoid stress in children

It should be understood that a child will not be able to completely avoid negative situations.
He will have to be isolated from the rest of the world for this to happen. However, it is quite possible to reduce their influence and increase the resistance of the nervous system to various stresses. For this you will need:

1. Strict daily routine, rest
   . First of all, children of any age must follow a routine and go to bed on time. Sleep should be continuous and complete. Babies need to be put to bed at the same time. Before this, water treatments are recommended. It's best if it's a shower. Contrast procedures or hot baths are contraindicated. Of course, you shouldn’t overeat in the evening. Games before bedtime (including computer games), as well as physical activity, should be avoided, as they have a stimulating effect. The same applies to mental stress in the evening.
2. Sports activities
   . Various physical activities in the morning, afternoon, and evening (but no later than three hours before bedtime) increase resistance to stress. Sports activities are generally a great way to relieve stress in children, increase self-esteem, and improve the general condition of the body. Walking in the fresh air is very useful for relaxing after physical or mental stress. They can be either fast or slow. At the same time, it is useful to communicate, ask about the state of health, the day spent, discuss problems, helping to get rid of the negativity accumulated during the day.
3. Limited access to computer, TV
   . It is necessary to control the content that reaches the child. Limit or completely eliminate overly aggressive computer games, films with scenes of violence, and age-inappropriate materials.
4. Preparing for a stressful situation
   . To reduce the risk of negative consequences, for example, when a child goes to kindergarten, psychologists recommend that parents play hide and seek with their child. This will help you understand that the absence of mom or dad is temporary and always ends with their arrival.
5. Proper nutrition
   . Healthy and nutritious food is also very important for psychological well-being. This has already been mentioned in the causes of stress. And it's not just about taste or the feeling of satiety. With food, the body receives essential minerals that play an important role in chemical processes. They either provoke excessive excitability or calm the nervous system. For active and impressionable children who have problems, for example, with sleep, it is recommended to add mint and lemon balm to tea, and drink warm milk before bed. In addition, for example, insufficient intake of an element such as magnesium contributes to disruption of metabolic processes in cells, overexcitation of the nervous system, development of a tendency to diabetes, increased blood pressure, and so on. Magnesium deficiency is promoted by the consumption of orthophosphoric acid in carbonated sweet drinks, energy drinks, excessive consumption of semi-finished products saturated with food additives (glutamate, aspartate), and the use of psychostimulants.
6. Taking vitamins during the changing seasons
   . Starting from late autumn and ending in early spring, the natural intake of microelements (including magnesium) into the body decreases. This is one of the factors causing stress. Therefore, it is necessary to compensate for the intake of necessary substances by taking vitamins.

How to treat stress in children - watch the video:

Stress in a child is a common and almost inevitable phenomenon. At least in the short term. It is very difficult to define, since there are many symptoms similar to other body disorders. A specialist must make a final diagnosis through several interviews and psychological tests. Treatment is carried out comprehensively, using medicinal and non-medicinal means. But you shouldn’t resort to radical methods of influence. It is better to engage in prevention and prepare the child’s body for stressful situations in advance.

Causes of stress in adolescence

• Birth of a brother or sister. Parents pay all the time and attention to the baby, which is why the older child may become jealous of the younger one. He cannot adequately and correctly evaluate the actions of his parents.
• Change of place of residence, sleep problems, conflicts with friends, fatigue that arose due to studying.
• Long absence or death of a loved one or pet.
• Factors from the outside world (TV, Internet, surrounding people).
• Parents' divorce.