Tips for Reducing Christmas Break Anxiety by Chynna Laird

Tips for Reducing Christmas Break Anxiety
by Chynna Laird, SPD author, blogger and momma

Jaimie checks out the new things I’ve written on our kitchen calendar to coordinate with what’s on the one in her bedroom. She sees the big ‘Yay!’ sticker I put on the 17th indicating the last day of school before Winter Break.

“Does that mean Christmas time starts on 17?” she asks.

“Well, it means that your break from school starts on that day,” I say.

Jaimie pauses, her face goes blank. “What are we going to do?”

I give a few suggestions as she scribbles them all down in her notebook that she titled, “Plans For Christmas Break”. She puts everything under either Plan A, Plan B, or Plan C headings. Then she worries we won’t have enough to do and comes up with a few other back up events. I’m exhausted just talking about everything! But I’ve gotten used to this because, as odd as it sounds, it’s calming for Jaimie to know what’s coming ahead and having a plan helps her get through these changes thrown her way.

Jaimie’s tremendous anxiety was what made me realize something was truly wrong. And I noticed it as early as weeks into her life. Jaimie changes when she’s anxious—not just physically but her overall ability to function. She’s extremely reactive, fearful of most experiences, people and events, her sleeping patterns were poor and she obsessed about things. Not just things going on at the time but things that might happen. Her body gets rigid, her shoulders hunch over, she walks around on her tippie toes (more often than usual), she rocks, her face goes pale…stoic…and she completely introverts. Yes, many of these are signs that her body needs some sensory input too but there are times when she is still anxious even after I’ve filled her up with a good sensory diet and squishy massages. Why? Because although anxiety and SPD are synonymous for many, not every child with SPD will have anxiety and certainly not to the level Jaimie experiences.   Each child is different.
Read more »

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

FTF: Friendships Lost Leave Openings for Others by Gina St. Aubin

Image
As my First Things First series comes to a close, I am moved by all of the essays that have come before this, but also truly inspired by our last 2010 FTF post.  So, here is December's First Things First article, which was written by Gina St. Aubin In Colorado, Gina St. Aubin is a wife, mother, blogger, and advocate for those with intellectual and physical challenges. You can visit her blog Special Happens , follow her on Twitter as @Special_Happens, or look for her on FaceBook . For more information about First Things First click here . There is also a list of the previous First Things First articles under the " Guest Posts and FTF " tab at the top -- with the obvious title of "First Things First Articles".   I will be announcing the 2011 FTF writers in just a few days -- LOOK FOR THEM! : ) ----------------------------- Friendships Lost Leave Openings for Others by Gina St. Aubin Who hasn’t looked around and taken an unwitting inventory of their lives; which p...
Read more

Music Lessons

Image
Do your kids love music? Mine sure do. It was probably 4 years ago now, and I was driving out of our subdivision with all three boys in the van – Gabe was in Kindergarten, which makes Nick 2 1/2 at the time and Matt around 6 months. From out of the back I hear the boys talking about playing musical instruments. “Mom,” Nick starts, “Can I have a drum set?" I grin, “Maybe someday.” “Can I have a Tuba?” Gabe interjects. “No.” I laugh out loud at the image of my son, much smaller than a Tuba, attempting to play it. But, that planted the musical seed for all of us. Flash forward four years, and I am contemplating putting Nick and Gabe in Piano lessons. Why Piano? Because it seems that might be the most convenient to actually attend. And, Nick tried Drum lessons at three different locations, but he was just too young at the time. Not to mention, I don’t want a drum set in the house, but could live with a keyboard. I bet you’re shocked that I am not interested in a drum set, huh? My husb...
Read more

Putting the Fun in Dysfunctional by Patty Porch

Last month, on the way home from my nephew’s baptism party, my husband said, in a shocked tone, “That was the best family party we have ever been to. The kids were amazing and had so much fun! I wasn’t even stressed out or worried about the kids getting over stimulated. What just happened?” Throughout the rest of our 3-hour car drive home, we discussed what had made this particular party so much fun. We also compared it to other parties that were not nearly so pleasant. Parties that ended in tears and meltdowns, parties that we had to leave because one of our kids was just too over stimulated to handle. Parties that I swore would be the last I attended because things had gone so poorly for Danny and/or Charlotte. We realized this particular party in September had been so successful because we have some family members who are 100% committed to making family gatherings pleasant for my two SPD kids. Though my family has always been supportive, they haven’t always known how to help. ...
Read more