But what about for kids, who most probably never had those mental wellness strategies in the first place?
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“Children haven't had many experiences to help them grow an internal "tool box" of positive energies to manage intense fear and anxiety,” says Kuhoo. “Any time a child faces significant change it can lead to a feeling of anxiousness, which can be frightening. The predictable routine which fosters resilience to overwhelming events is missing.”
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Importantly, young children do not recognise the existence of chance events and may attribute the disaster to something they have done. Children often tune into our distress and in the absence of proper, clear, understandable information, they often make up their own exaggerated stories which may even be worse than reality.
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Kuhoo Gupta shares some age-appropriate activities and mindful manifestations to help children cope with stressful feelings…
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Gazing out the window early morning is calming and soothing and helps heighten awareness of the stillness, provided you can spot a cloud in the sky. Ask them to sit in deep silence while watching the clouds, settle their attention on their breath and with each inhale and exhale let their gaze expand into the spaciousness of the clouds. Whenever their attention wanders, gently ask them to let those thoughts go, and come back to the clouds. Practice this for 10 minutes every day.
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This technique not only helps the child to visualise worries as they drift away, but it also promotes deep breathing as they literally blow bubbles, which automatically sends a message to the body to relax and calm down. Steps: Find a bottle of bubbles (or prepare your own using dish soap and sugar) and explain to your child, "Sometimes worry feels like little bubbles inside our mind. We can feel worry in our tummies, in our brains, or pretty much anywhere inside our bodies.” Then: 1. Ask them to think about the worry that is bothering them and picture that they are blowing the worry into the bubble as they blow a bubble. The worry is now inside that bubble; 2. Ask them to watch that bubble float away and pop. Ask them to carry the worry far, far away from them. Now they know that the worry has popped and is outside of them, unable to bother them anymore. 3. Ask them to keep blowing bubbles until they feel more calm and relaxed.
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Binaural beats happen when the right and left ear each receive a slightly different frequency tone, yet the brain perceives these as a single tone. Considered safe for children, advocates of this type of therapy recommend it for the treatment of anxiety, stress, and related disorders, and to help children enhance their intuitive state. You can find binaural beats on any music or video streaming service.
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They are also used as mindfulness tools and help with visual thinking, problem solving, brain training, accessing the unconscious and whole brain stimulation. From psychologists to ancient spiritual traditions, color and sound are said to alter our mental well being and affect our mental states. Allow your kids to enjoy psychedelic, colourful, and vibrant Kaleidoscopic animations streaming in YouTube or you can even order a kaleidoscope toy for children.
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When meditating, the ordinary thinking process is "transcended", replaced by a state of pure consciousness.. Ten or fifteen minutes twice a day will help them experience a significant, natural relief from stress, anxiety, depression and fatigue. Steps for Children: 1. Sit in a comfortable chair with your feet on the ground and hands in your lap. Leave your legs and arms uncrossed; 2. Close your eyes, and take a few deep breaths to relax the body; 3. Open your eyes, and then close them again. Your eyes will remain closed during the 10-minute practice; 4. Repeat the TM mantra (a wordless sound) in your mind; 5. When you recognize you're having a thought, simply return to the mantra; 6. After 10 minutes, begin to move your fingers and toes to ease yourself back to the world.
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Ask your child to Calm-Down for a minute which helps 'bring them back' gently, helping them become relaxed for a minute. One-moment meditation is a guided Warm-Up that gets your child 'in the zone' quickly and powerfully. This meditation has been shown to reduce stress, boost immunity, increase happiness and mindfulness.
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Ask your child to gently and slowly inhale a normal amount of air through the nose, filling in their lower lungs. Then exhale easily. Ask them to place one hand in their stomach and one on their chest. As your child inhales gently, the lower hand should rise while the upper hand stays still. Ask your child to continue this gentle breathing pattern with a relaxed attitude, concentrating on filling only the lower lungs.
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You can ask your child to relax on the bed, breath slowly and evenly from the stomach and not from the chest and deep dive into remembering good things. By closing both the eyes, recalling a pleasing and a joyful image from the past, ask them to vividly experience the same by remembering the sound, smell, colour and taste of the moments. After 10 minutes ask your child to return back with a good feeling accumulated from those memories. You can also download hypnosis podcasts for kids to help with the same.
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