Add to your parent newsletter! Childhood Stress: How Parents Can Help from KidsHealth.org explains:

• That stress is a get-ready signal
• When stress can be helpful
• When stress can be harmful

This article describes positive stress, life event stress (including difficult life events and good life events), chronic stress, and traumatic stress.

Some suggested ways parents can help kids cope with stress, include:

• Using positive stress to meet goals, adapt to change, face challenges, and gain confidence
• Teaching, not doing tasks for them
• During stressful life events, provide extra support and extra stability
• As much as possible, protect kids from chronic stress and traumatic stress
• During unavoidable chronic stress help kids feel loved and safe, teach coping skills, and facilitate the following:
  • Play
  • Creativity
  • Time in nature
  • Reading
  • Making music
  • Time with family and friends
• During unavoidable traumatic stress provide extra support and care, seek help from a doctor or therapist, spend positive time together, and provide opportunities to use their strengths

Add to your parent newsletter! Managing Stress for a Healthy Lifestyle from the American Psychological Association encourages parents to:

• Evaluate their lifestyle in terms of stress and health
• Communicate with their children about stress and problem solving
• Create healthy environments for their families
• Focus on healthy eating, physical activity, and adequate sleep
• If changing behavior, choose just one at a time to change