12-22-09

Helping Kids Get Through the Holidays

All the excitement of the holiday brings interruptions in a child’s routine and can add stress for children and sometimes cause behavioral problems.

The holidays are thought of as a magical time of year, but stress and pressure from extra activities, shopping and high expectations can impact family harmony.  Glen Aylward, professor of pediatrics at SIU School of Medicine in Springfield, says in some cases the holidays can cause behavior problems in children.

SOUND BITE:  “If the child is already anxious, perhaps the anxiety will increase with the stresses of the holidays.  Similarly, if an adolescent is depressed, perhaps there will be increased depression.  If the child has an attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, the structure that is provided by the family often changes and with less structure, you have more of an emergence of the ADHD symptoms perhaps.” 

Aylward encourages parents to make the holidays more fun and less stressful, which will make their children’s behaviors more acceptable.  He suggests that parents take steps to reduce the stress in their own lives as well as the lives of their children.

SOUND BITE:   “If the parents are overwhelmed, if the parents are stressed out because of financial issues or other emotional issues, this is going to have repercussions on the child.  So if the parents can take a step back and not get caught up in the frenzy of the holidays, perhaps the child will do better as well.”

Aylward reminds parents that children actually remember things that happen around Christmas such family traditions like reading “The Night before Christmas” and community activities.  If a child’s behavior becomes more disruptive or doesn’t return to normal soon after the holidays, the child may need to see his or her doctor or a pediatric counselor.

This is Ruth Slottag at SIU School of Medicine in Springfield.