What would cause an eight-year old girl to feel stress?
You might be surprised.
Recently, I was teaching a Mother-Daughter Yoga class focused on school stress. Most of the girls who attended were eight years old and in second grade. During our group discussion, I asked them about their biggest sources of stress. Having been a classroom teacher for over ten years, I was expecting them to say things related to troubled friendships, playground disputes or mean teachers. I was wrong.
All of the stories these girls shared about stress related to academics, specifically tests.
According to this group of girls, the number one stress trigger was tests. They described the pressure they feel to score well on a test, the shame they experience when they rush through a test and make a mistake, and the anxiety that ensues in the time between completing a test and receiving their test score. Their stories included details of how they experience stress: a racing heart, tension in their shoulders and neck, stomachaches. Despite their young age, stress for these girls is as real as it is for adults.
Study after study has shown that the long-term effects of stress are detrimental to health and wellbeing. Stress is linked with heart disease, obesity, and depression, just to name a few.
The fact that girls experience notable stress as early as eight years old is alarming and highlights the importance of teaching stress-reducing strategies and emotional coping tools from a young age.
Mother-Daughter Yoga is an excellent way to introduce your daughter to the stress relieving benefits of movement, and these are three other practices you can try at home.
- Slow, deep belly breaths.
Put one hand on the stomach and one hand on the heart. Feel the breath fill up and the belly and heart. Use a breathing ball and focus on expanding the belly just as you expand the ball. You will notice that after about five breaths, the heart rate slows and you have created an overall sense of calm. Yoga is a great exercise for cultivating breath awareness.
- Talk about situations that trigger stress.
Share strategies for avoiding or minimizing stressful situations. For example, if your daughter has noted that rushing on a test caused stress, talk about ways she can remember to manage her time.
- Have fun in the kitchen!
Food is a powerful healer. Try making your own Stress-Busting Snack. Not only will you create a healthy, tasty treat, it is also a great opportunity to talk about the health benefits of certain foods. Here are some suggestions:
Stress-Busting Muesli
Mix oats, pumpkin seeds, chopped, dried apricots, blueberries, almonds, and walnuts. Mix with vanilla almond milk or coconut milk.
Stress-Busting Smoothie
Break out the blender for this super easy, super delicious stress busting smoothie!
Blend:
1c. almond milk
1-2 tsps. almond butter
½-1 frozen banana
A few dark chocolate chips for a sweet stress busting delight!
For a fruitier version, try almond milk, berries, banana, and a handful of frozen spinach. (Even the pickiest eater won’t notice the spinach with the berries and banana.)
Stress-Busting Snack Mix
Mix your favorite stress busting nuts and dried fruits for your own delicious medley. Add a few dark chocolate chips to sweeten the deal.
My favorite stress fighting foods:
Almonds are full of B vitamins and magnesium, both of which produce serotonin, which helps regulate mood, relieve stress and improve sleep.
Pistachios and Walnuts reduce tension and lower blood pressure.
Bananas contain tryptophan, which is also converted into serotonin.
Dark Chocolate has polyphenols, which are antioxidants and help slow and repair organ damage caused by stress.
Blueberries are extremely high in vitamin C and high in fiber helping our body reduce tension and regulate blood sugar levels.
Apricots: They are rich in magnesium, Vitamin C and fiber. Magnesium is a natural muscle relaxant, which can help reduce tension in our muscles.
Oats boost levels of serotonin, a calming brain chemical.
Spinach is high in magnesium and will reduce stress-triggered headaches and fatigue.
Pumpkin Seeds are loaded with stress-busting potential thanks to high levels of magnesium.
Bring Mother-Daughter to your community. Contact Erica to schedule your private group class.
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