How to help young children with anxiety using coping skills cards

Anxiety is a common mental health issue that can be debilitating for children. In this blog post we will look at how to help young children with anxiety using coping skills cards.

Anxiety can manifest in many different ways, including physical symptoms like a racing heart, sweating, and trembling. It can also cause children to feel restless, have difficulty concentrating, and feel like they are in danger. 

There are many different treatments for anxiety, including medication and therapy. To find out more about medication and therapy, please speak with a qualified doctor. However, some children may benefit from using coping cards. Coping cards are cards that contain different coping strategies/activities that children can use/do when they are feeling anxious. The strategies and activities on the cards can be used to help children calm down, feel more in control, and cope with their anxiety in a healthy way.

When a child is feeling anxious, they can choose a card and try the strategy that is written on it.

Here are just a few of the different strategies and activities that can be used with children who may be feeling anxious:

Focus on their breath -  This can be done by having them count each inhale and exhale, or by having them focus on the rise and fall of their chest. This can help to ground the child and help them to focus on something else other than their anxiety.

Exercise -  have the child run on the spot, dance, do yoga, bounce on a trampaline or around the gardern. This can help release endorphins.  Endorphins can help the child to feel good and reduce stress. 

Have the child imagine being happy and calm -.  This can help to distract the child from their anxiety and can provide them with a sense of peace.

Draw a picture - Children love to get creative and by asking your child to draw a picture will help to focus the child's mind on something other than what is making them feel anxious.

How to make Anxiety Coping Strategies Cards

There are a lot of different ways to make coping cards, but one way is to simply write different coping strategies and activities on index cards. Once you have a bunch of different strategies written down, you can then put them into a deck of cards. 

If you decide to make your own coping cards, it can be helpful to involve your child in the process. This way, they can help choose which strategies go on the cards and they will be more likely to use the cards when they are feeling anxious. Alternatively, you can find ready-made coping cards online that you can print at home. 

Once you have your coping cards, you can encourage your child to use them when they are feeling anxious. Help them to understand that it is okay to feel anxious sometimes and that the coping strategies and activities can help them to feel better. There are a lot of different coping strategies that can be helpful for children, so it is important to find ones that work well for your child.

If you are interested in using coping cards with your child, there are many different resources available. You can purchase coping cards online or at some stores. 

Why not check out these available from our online store. 45 ready made cards which you can print and start using right away. we also include a coping skills tracker which you can use with your child to track which activities help to control the anxiety and which don't. 

CLICK HERE

Please note: Information provided in this post is for information purposes only and is not intended to be use as medical advice.