All teens feel anxious on occasions, that is normal and to be expected. Anxiety is a normal reaction to stress. We can see anxiety appear for teens when taking a test at school, speaking in public, meeting new people, going on dates, competitions, etc.

Anxiety/stress can be a good thing sometimes, we call this “positive stress”, this stress/anxiety can make you try harder to do well. It can be a motivator to be your best. At other times anxiety can be harmful especially if its excessive and irrational and prevents you from being able to focus or function in a situation.

Signs of excess anxiety in teens

  1. Feelings of anxiousness worry and fear for no reason at all. Normally, teens feel anxious for a specific reason like meeting new people or public peaking. But if there is no reason for the feelings, your anxiety levels may be too high.
  2. You worry too much about everyday events and activities. Some worry is normal but if you’re constantly worrying, it feels like you can’t shut off the anxiety then your anxiety levels may be too high.
  3. You continually check whether you did something right. Its ok to check it once but to continually check it is a sign of way too much anxiety.
  4. You are so nervous and panicky your unable to function at specific situations.
  5. Teens can have panic attacks. Signs of panic attacks: Racing heart, tightness in chest, tense muscles, problems swallowing, dizzy, nausea.
  6. Some emotional signs are: Feeling edgy or shaky, irritability, difficulty concentrating and focus, restlessness and unexplained outburst
  7. Avoiding social interactions with friends and isolation
  8. Physical changes – Stomach problems, trouble sleeping, excessive fatigue, unexplained aches and pains, frequent headaches
  9. Kids/teens can feel nervous about camp, its normal – it’s a transition/change. Expect some kids to handle the anxiety better then others but it is normal.
  10. Behaviors caused from anxiety – Skin picking, pulling out of hair, biting nails/cuticles and avoidance of people or activities due to fear.

Ways to deal with anxiety

  1. Telling the child everything will be fine doesn’t work. Their emotions have taken over. Its hard for a child to think clearly or logically during a very anxious time instead try:

*Have the child pause and take a few deeps breathe or just sit and calm down. Deep breathing will help reverse the nervous system response. Try the 1-2-3 technique.

* Empathize with the child – it lets the child know you care and understand

* Once the child calms down, then you can problem solve

  1. Mindfulness activities

Pay it forward exercise – have kids do a random act of kindness each day. They can write a thank you to another camper, staff, friend or family member.

Gratitude exercise – have each child talk about one thing they are grateful for

Guided meditations using technology – have each kid go on you tube and pick a few minute meditation to listen to. Headphones are needed.

For younger kids, teach deep breathing by using bubbles or pinwheels.

Mindful nature hike- go for a walk and have each camper notice the sounds, colors, smells

Have the campers jump or skip for a minute then have them sit and put their hand over their heart, close their eyes and pay attention to the heartbeat.

Muscle tension exercise – have them lay down and tighten all their muscles, hold and release. This will release the tension/stress physically.

Get coloring books for everyone and just have them do it for 15 minutes, it helps relieve stress.

To change mood- have child listen to some of their favorite music or they can do a favorite time visualization. They can take a few minutes, close their eyes and visualize a favorite time in their life, really go back to that place in time.

  1. Let the child know that worry is normal. It lets us know something is wrong. It can also protect us. Let them know everyone has some anxiety from time to time.
  2. Don’t ignore their anxiety and fears. It will not help them, it might make them feel worse and they will be less likely to come to you for help.
  3. Talk through their worries. Ask them:
  • What thoughts are they having?
  • Ask them if this thought is true? A lot of times are worries aren’t based on reality. Remind them feelings are not facts.
  • Challenge the thought – if its not true, what is true?
  • If it is true, have them go to the worst-case scenario- what if it does happen? How do I handle it? Who do I talk to? What can I do to feel better? What would I tell a friend in the same situation?
  1. Ask the parent or the child – what self -soothes them? Is it deep breathing, talking it out, going for a walk, etc.
  2. Remove their social media time – it causes FOMO. Its better for them to be involved in the activities and be in the moment. Anxiety is either fear of the past or the future when they are in the moment it’s their happiest time.
  3. Talk with parents about the child’s fear before camp starts. Remind parents not to talk negatively about camp experiences.
  4. Staff need to show they care and build trust by not insulting kids in front of other peers, listening without judgement, be an active and empathetic listener.
  5. Kids learn through role modeling, imitation and observation – be a great role model, watch your own behaviors and words.

Helping Campers with anxiety

Before you help any camper with any issue, you want to connect with them. A camper won’t open up or trust you if they don’t feel a connection with you. The best way to do this is through empathy.

Connect by acknowledging their feelings. Example: I see your feeling hurt or I’m sorry to hear your feeling so sad.

Acknowledge their effort: I’m so impressed how you tried zip-lining. You are so brave for trying even with your fear of heights.

Normalize their feelings by telling them how others have felt the same way or how you feel similar. You can give real life examples from past campers or friends/family.

Redirect/problem solve – Example: Let’s see what we can do to solve the problem. Let’s see how we can help you to feel better.

Address the anxiety: if a situation is coming up that campers can feel anxious about such as public speaking or a new activity, you can ask the campers if they are feeling nervous? What makes them feel better?

Share your own experience from your first time.

Explain how feeling nervous, scared or anxious is normal.

Let campers know who they can go to when feeling sad, anxious or scared.  Reassure them that these people are here to help always. Encourage them to open up and talk about their feelings. What works for one camper might not work for another.

Helping campers having an anxiety attack

  1. Remain calm yourself- if you panic, you will make the camper more anxious or cause other campers to feel anxious.
  2. Talk to the child in a calm, caring, compassionate manner. Be positive and supportive. Example: We will help you to calm down. You’re not alone, I will stay with you.
  3. Have the camper calm down by sitting down and deep breathe. Explain to them how to deep breathe. (Inhale through nose, hold for a second, exhale out through the mouth, repeat.)
  4. Remind the camper that they will be okay. It’s a temporary feeling.

As a Therapist, Educator and Positive Living Expert, Diane has dedicated her career to helping people turn their lives around and is now on a mission to help them develop a sustainable positive attitude that can actually turn one into an optimist, literally.

Through her two books, “Creating Balance & Finding Happiness” and “Baby Steps: the Path from Motherhood to Career.” Diane has been speaking and empowering parents and adults nationwide. She is also an Adjunct in Psychology at Montclair State University, where her college work includes mentoring students for personal issue advisement.

As an expert in her fields of therapy, Lang has been featured in the Daily Record, Family Circle, Family Magazine, Working Mother Magazine and Cookie Magazine, seen on NJ 12 TV, Good day CT, Style CT, The Veira Network, CBS TV and “Fox & Friends”. She has also participated in a reality based Internet show, ourprisoner.com, hosted Generation X-tinet. In addition Lang writes a blog for Pazoo.com

For more information please visit http://www.dlcounseling.com or email Diane at DLCounseling2014@gmail.com

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