Strategies
There is no cure for anxiety. It is part of our stress response designed to keep us vigilant for safety. Therefore we can only try to help our young folk manage their anxiety. What works can be different for different kids, and it depends on a number of factors such as their genetic coding, epigentics; environmental impacts on genes which inhibit specific genes from being turned on or off, chemical balance of neurotransmitters and the degree of functionality, or conversely, dis-functionality, in the stress response systems.
For young people with highly disregulated stress systems, it may not be possible to engage in a conversation about feelings, emotions, behaviours and brain functioning until such time as they are stablised with anti-anxiety medications which provide sufficient buffering to prevent or reduce the likelihood of triggering the stress response system again.
For those who are positioned to be able to learn and practice strategies, there are innumerable, and many examples of these can be explored in the 'Kids and Teens' section. However, it is critical that as supporting adults or peers, we recognise the biological underpinnings of the behaviours which are exhibited when anxiety is triggered, particularly when it engages the fight, flight, freeze response.
The following resources have been developed to assist in being prepared to know what cues to look for and how to respond to these; in a way which promotes de-esculation and calming. While developed primarily for classroom use, they are equally as pertinent in other settings. It builds upon, and is to be used in conjunction with, Babette Rothschild's poster version of the 'Autonomic Nervous System: Precision Regulation'
For young people with highly disregulated stress systems, it may not be possible to engage in a conversation about feelings, emotions, behaviours and brain functioning until such time as they are stablised with anti-anxiety medications which provide sufficient buffering to prevent or reduce the likelihood of triggering the stress response system again.
For those who are positioned to be able to learn and practice strategies, there are innumerable, and many examples of these can be explored in the 'Kids and Teens' section. However, it is critical that as supporting adults or peers, we recognise the biological underpinnings of the behaviours which are exhibited when anxiety is triggered, particularly when it engages the fight, flight, freeze response.
The following resources have been developed to assist in being prepared to know what cues to look for and how to respond to these; in a way which promotes de-esculation and calming. While developed primarily for classroom use, they are equally as pertinent in other settings. It builds upon, and is to be used in conjunction with, Babette Rothschild's poster version of the 'Autonomic Nervous System: Precision Regulation'
classroom_responses_to_anxiety_regulation_and_arousal.pdf | |
File Size: | 109 kb |
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