How To Ease Back-To-School Stress
The start of a new school year is always a challenging time for kids, parents, and teachers alike and this year is even more of a challenge.
With a little preparation and the right attitude though, shifting from the extended summer break due to COVID-19 this year back into school mode can be made stress-free and healthy.
Helping Yourself or Your Child Cope with Back-to-School Stress
Here are four things families can do to deal with back-to-school stress.
Fall 2020 is a completely unprecedented back-to-school time for students, teachers, and their families.
Whatever choice is made with schooling, there is a higher level of back-to-school stress and uncertainty going into this coming school year than there ever has been before.
How do we cope with such back-to-school stress? What can we do to make this a time for our children that feels less scary, even if we ourselves are unsure during this difficult time?
Practice Self-Care and Encourage the Same From Your Kids
We've got to put on our own oxygen mask first in order to stay healthy for the needs of our families this year. We are less effective in caring for our loved ones if we are not caring for ourselves too.
Self-care looks a bit differently for everyone but before you or your kids start to get too stressed out, create a list of your favourite hobbies so that you have something to turn to when you start to feel frazzled.
List out any fun hobbies that you can do on your own or with your family on a regular basis.
Take Time To Talk To Your Children
In addition to family self-care time, communication is extra important as we venture into these uncharted territories. With all the uncertainty in the air, your children need to know what the start of this school year will look like for them.
Stress and anxiety doesn’t always show on the surface, so work together to be open about what’s going on.
Allow your kids to ask questions and be honest with them. If there is something you do not know the answer to, let them know you will do your best to find out.
Whether you’re a teacher or the parent of a student, set aside time now to talk to your kids about this new normal of the school year this fall.
Get Outside
As we start to bundle back up into long sleeves and stay indoors more, it's important to still take the time to get outside regularly.
Whether as a family or for some self-care time alone, getting into nature is a powerful way to relieve stress and improve your immune system. The natural fragrances released by trees and other plants have been shown to reduce blood pressure and stress as well as help to boost the immune system.
It doesn't take much time to benefit your well-being, 30-minutes a week can make a difference, although the more time outdoors, the better!
Go for a bike ride or visit a park or hiking trail to reclaim your calm and balance.
Get Your Schedules Set
Our sleep cycles are crucial to staying healthy and reducing stress. For many parents and kids alike, the summer is a time when longer days and more free time shifts our schedules and the quarantine has only accentuated that this year.
Now is the time to get a schedule set back in place, prioritizing sleep and self-care time to stay well throughout the school year.
Help your kids make informed decisions about their digital devices and the impact that screens can have on sleep quality and stress levels.
You can set up Screen Time apps together or include coordinated Do Not Disturb periods for the family activities that you want to do.
A great example of how to do more of this comes from the book 24/6 by Tiffany Shlain on how to create a Digital Sabbath for yourself and your family.
We all have our part to play in staying healthy and safe as schools start back up. This includes being conscientious to not exhaust yourself and burn out through taking the time to stay connected as a family, talk through the uncertainty, spend quality time together, and unplug from technology to reduce stress and sleep better.