Key Takeaways
- Struggling in school, frequent nurse visits, and not wanting to go to school can be signs of anxiety.
- Stomachaches, headaches, and sleep trouble that happen on school days but not weekends may point to school-related anxiety.
- Fear of making mistakes, perfectionism, and meltdowns over schedule changes are common emotional and behavioral signs.
- Summer break is a good time for an assessment before the next school year.
Summer break is a chance to reset, and for kids who struggled during the school year, it may be the best time to find out why. Dr. Parsons says she's seeing more and more children with anxiety, and in this video she covers the signs parents should watch for.
School Signs to Watch For
Your child may be dealing with anxiety if they:
- Had trouble concentrating in school
- Made frequent visits to the nurse's office
- Had trouble participating in class
- Saw their grades go down
- Started not wanting to go to school
Physical Symptoms
Anxiety often shows up in the body. Watch for frequent stomachaches, headaches, nausea, tiredness, trouble falling or staying asleep, and changes in appetite. If these happen during the school week but not on weekends, Dr. Parsons says that can be a sign of anxiety directed toward school.
Emotional Signs
Your child might be turning into a worrier, constantly asking "what if" and acting out of fear. A fear of making mistakes is especially concerning, Dr. Parsons notes, because kids learn from their mistakes, and children who are afraid to make them are afraid to push through and grow. Irritability, crying a lot, and needing a lot of predictability, where a change in schedule leads to a meltdown, can also be signs. These can show up in very young children, too.
Behavioral Changes
- Meltdowns
- Bed-wetting
- Feeling like they have to be perfect
- Refusing to go to school
- Avoiding activities, people, or places
Why Summer Is the Time to Act
Summer gives you time to have your child assessed before the next school year begins. Dr. Parsons evaluates whether the issue is something to address chiropractically or through brain training and brainwave assessment. If it's a brainwave issue, she explains, the child's "operating system" is stuck, and the goal is to get it back into better balance.
As she puts it, when the brain is in stress, learning is hard. Getting help over the summer can set your child up for a much better school year.
Help for Your Child in Fresno
If you're noticing any of these signs, The Natural Path Health Center can help. Learn more about our Brain Blossom program for kids and our chiropractic care for children.
Read the full video transcript
It's summertime, and for a lot of parents, some of you are going "Yay!" and some of you are going, "Oh no, what am I going to do with my kiddo?" Now, anxiety in kids is a real deal, and as time goes on, I'm seeing more and more children with it. So if your kiddo was having trouble concentrating in school, if they were making frequent visits to the nurse's office, if they were having trouble participating in class, if their grades were going down, if they were starting to not want to go to school, those are all signs. That's one battle that you don't want to have to fight every school day, and it's a sign that something might be causing a problem. So I wanted to go over anxiety signs in kids. Starting with physical symptoms: if your kiddo is getting a lot of stomachaches, headaches, if they're saying they're nauseated, if they're tired, if they're having trouble sleeping, falling asleep, staying asleep, if they have a change in appetite, and especially if those things happen during the school week but not on the weekend, that could be a sign of anxiety directed toward school. There could be an emotional side of this. If they're turning into a worrier, a "what if, what if," fear-based, if they're fearful of making a mistake, that's a big problem, because we learn from those mistakes. Kids who are afraid to make mistakes are afraid to push through and learn and grow into new, better things. If they're crabby, irritable, if they're crying a lot, if they need a lot of predictability, if a change in the schedule causes a meltdown, those can be signs of anxiety. And these can be happening in your little, little ones. If there are behavioral changes: the meltdowns, if there's some bed-wetting, if they feel like they have to be perfect, if they refuse to go to school, if they avoid activities, people, places, these are all problems. And it's summertime now. Now is the time that you can get these kiddos in, so we can do an assessment to see: is this something that we need to address chiropractically, or is this something that we might need to address via brain training and assessing brainwaves? If it's a brainwave issue, their operating system is stuck in this, and we want to get them unstuck and back into better balance, so when they go into next school year, it will be a much better year for them and for you. Because every parent wants their child to thrive. Every parent wants their child to grow into their full potential. But anxiety stops it. When the brain is in stress, learning is hard. So if you're a parent with a kiddo and you're noticing any of these things, get them in while they're on summer break, so we can set them up for amazing success next school year. I'm Dr. Mikell Suzanne Parsons, founder of the Natural Path Health Center, and I hope your kids don't have anxiety, but if they do, I hope to see them here. Bye.
Dr. Mikell Suzanne Parsons, DC, CCN, DACBN, DACNB
Dr. Mikell Suzanne Parsons, DC, CCN, DACBN, DACNB is a Doctor of Chiropractic, certified clinical nutritionist, and brain wellness expert with 34+ years serving Fresno families at The Natural Path Health Center.
Learn More About Dr. Parsons
