The carefree days of youth are not so carefree, a recent poll of nearly 900 children between 9 and 13 shows.
More than 4 in 10 kids surveyed by KidsHealth said they feel stressed most of the time or always. The youngsters cited having too much to do as the main reason, according to KidsHealth, a division of the Nemours Foundation, a non-profit organization that studies children’s health issues.
Even more telling, perhaps: More than three-fourths of the children polled said they longed for more free time.
“We’ve all gone a little bit overboard,” said Dr. Kate Cronan, medical editor for the KidsHealth Web site. Extracurricular activities such as sports and music lessons are the main culprits, Cronan said.
“It’s coming at them from all sides,” Cronan said, including parents, schools and kids themselves who want to keep up with their counterparts.
Stress can have severe consequences in a child’s life, Cronan said, including the loss of sleep, falling behind in school and burnout.
Parents can help children who are feeling pressured, Cronan said. She offered these tips on recognizing signs of stress and what to do to relieve it.
How can you tell if your child has too many activities?
– If you are not eating family meals together except on the fly.
– If your children are always tired.
– If their academics begin to suffer.
Does your child complain about going to practice, games or lessons?
What can parents do to help?
– If kids are showing symptoms of being stressed, take them aside and talk to them about cutting back on activities.
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– Emphasize to children that just because their friends are on a treadmill, they don’t have to be on one too.
– Schedule downtime.
How can parents help a child cut back on activities, especially if the child seems to enjoy them?
– Help them reset their priorities. Talk to them about their activities. Ask, “What do you love? What’s your favorite activity?” Then eliminate something that they don’t feel passionate about.
– Try to be a better role model. If you are always racing around from here to there, your kids are going to see that as ordinary behavior.
– Help children strike a balance. Emphasize that overdoing it can be dangerous to their health.