He Child stress Is still an area of study in development that requires a greater number of investigations, so we still find More questions than answers concerning this phenomenon.
Stress is a construct widely investigated among adults, as they present it very frequently.
However, during the last two decades there has been a rise in the presence of this phenomenon among children and adolescents, resulting in what is known as child stress.
In this article I will talk about this problem during childhood and adolescence, delimiting its characteristics, causes and treatments.
What do we mean by childish stress?
Therefore, although children generally have less stressful environmental factors than adults, they can also Stress in certain situations.
Few constructs in mental health and psychopathology have been so important, but at the same time, as difficult to define as stress .
The definitions and conceptualizations of the concept of stress have been manifold over the last few years.
Currently, prevalent stress definitions focus on environmental conditions or circumstances that pose a threat, challenge, and / or Exceed or damage a person's biological or psychological capabilities.
Thus, definitions of stress include an environmental component to which the body has to act.
However, the environmental factor does not in itself explain the presence of stress, since this is a response made by the individual.
In this way, stress is also considered as a non-specific response of the body to any demand that requires adaptation.
That is to say: the stress can originate before any stimulus (whether or not it is stressful), in the moment in which the person perceives the environmental factor like Distressing, or distressing, and has trouble adapting properly to it.
In short, stress arises from the interaction between stimuli and environmental factors (which may be more distressing or less) and the Response of the person to them, which is destined to adapt through the resources that it possesses.
This first approach to the concept of stress is enough to rule out the possibility that only adults can suffer from stress.
In fact, the idea that stress is mainly caused by environmental factors and stimuli still reigns in our society today. Stressors.
We understand easily that a person who works 10 hours a day, has to take care of his children, to carry out his university studies and to carry out All household chores, will be easily stressed.
Instead, we find it harder to understand that a person with little activity, few demands and who has plenty of free time to rest suffer from stress.
However, stress arises from the responses that a person makes about their environmental factors, so it is not the latter that determine Its presence or absence, but is the person's own adaptation.
In this way, a person with few activities, duties and responsibilities may be much more stressed than a person with an agenda Permanently occupied.
Symptoms of Childhood Stress
The manifestation of stress in children differs from the symptoms that adults suffer from this same problem due to cognitive differences, Emotional and behavioral disorders among adults and children.
Also, the stage of development is another important factor when it comes to explaining, since the manifestations of stress that a child of few years Are different from those of an older child.
Thus, the symptoms of child stress are now divided into two different groups depending on the age of the child who suffers.
Stress symptoms in children under 5 years
Younger children can express their feelings of stress through a state of constant irritability, frequent crying and desires to be Always in the arms of their parents to try to mitigate their discomfort.
Likewise, they may suffer nightmares, exaggerated fears, usually to the dark, to the animals or to be separated from their parents, and modifications in their appetite.
Finally, child stress in children of this age can cause difficulties in speech and motivate a regression of behaviors, performing Behaviors more childish than would be normal for your age such as bed wetting or finger sucking.
Children of these ages are not able to recognize their feelings as a state of stress, so they may manifest their discomfort through Different modalities of expression.
Stress symptoms in children older than 5 years
Older children may also manifest their stress through a persistent state of irritability or by increasing their crying episodes Unmotivated
Also, as the child grows older, he or she is more aggressive than normal, perform behaviors to call the Attention, acquire a negative attitude To his brothers and complain of physical aches and pains.
Although older or preadolescent children may have a greater understanding of what anxiety and stress are, they are not usually able to Interpret their feelings as such, and discomfort can lead to different behavioral and emotional changes.
Causes of Childhood Stress
As discussed earlier in the definition of the concept of stress, this may be due to both external factors and factors Internal, and above all, by the interaction between both factors.
Thus, the causes of child stress are not far from the stress of adults, since this originates through a bad Psychological and personal adaptation to the demands or requirements of the environment.
Internal factors
When we talk about internal factors we refer to those characteristics that are part of the mental and psychological functioning of the child who suffers stress.
Thus, as internal factors that may be involved in the development of stress states we find the personality, thoughts and Attitudes of the child.
Thus, when the child needs to deal with difficult situations, the child may not have the necessary resources to adapt adequately and Respond to them with feelings of stress.
In this way, child stress can be generated by the same child (as happens with adults), according to how they perceive themselves Himself and the world around him.
Certain internal characteristics that can make the child more susceptible to stress are anxiety, shyness, the desire to please others, the Fear of failure, fear of punishment, concerns about their physical appearance, doubts about their ability to perform, among others.
External factors
As with adults, in children, stress appears when their personal resources are unable to adapt adequately to the environment, it is Ie when external factors exceed the child's adaptive capacities.
Usually, the external demands on a child are usually less"stressful"than those that may appear in the life of an adult, However, this fact does not guarantee that the child will never suffer from stress.
Depending on the child's internal factors, significant or relevant changes in his / her daily life may be enough to provoke him Feelings and states of stress.
Likewise, as you grow older, you have responsibilities beyond your capacity, witness family crises, divorces or separation from Their parents may also be risk factors for stress.
Other aspects such as the death or suffering of a serious illness by a close relative, the birth of a sibling, periods Of hospitalization, changes in the school environment or problems with their friendships may also expose the child to periods of stress.
Areas of stress in childhood
In addressing child stress, in addition to considering the type and nature of stressors, it is important to keep in mind the content of stress "Stressful"events.
When children are younger, stressors tend to be more related to the family and school context.
In contrast, during adolescence and pre-adolescence there is greater vulnerability to bodily transformation, change in relationships With parents and friends, and the beginning of sentimental relationships.
In this sense, we will discuss the three main areas of stress proposed by Maria Victoria Trianes in 2002.
school
In the literature on children's stress, primary school students have identified a series of events related to the school environment that Can act as stressors. These are:
To be rejected by equals.
Being bothered by children and elderly.
Be the last to reach a goal.
Be ridiculed in class.
Change of school.
Excess of school demands.
To take exams .
Bring home bad grades.
Have conflicts with teachers.
Have concerns regarding the academic future.
Set goals for success and have sports demands.
Family
The most stressful family factors that have been detected in the child population are basically:
The birth of a brother.
Conflicts in the relationship with the parents.
Death of grandparents or close friends.
Serious illness of any member of the family.
Address change.
Tensions and difficulties that affects the parents in the labor, economic or matrimonial scope.
Health
Finally, an investigation by McPherson in 2004, emphasized that pain and illness may be one of the main sources Of stress for children.
Likewise, Jewett and Petterson emphasized hospitalization as the most important stressor in the child population, and chronic disease as a Stress that can affect both the child and his family.
How to prevent stress in childhood
The prevention of child stress requires controlling many different aspects that shape the life of the child, and especially those that are related With the three areas we have just discussed.
In the first place, it is necessary for the parents to present themselves as role models for their children, so that they must be able to manage Adequately their anxiety states and their periods of stress in front of the child.
If this first requirement is not met, the child can learn to respond to external factors in the same way as their parents, so it will be more Vulnerable to stress.
Likewise, positive attitudes such as patience, joy, calmness, calmness and the reflective capacity of the parents towards their child, help the Child to develop similar attitudes to their external factors and allow to possess more resources to avoid states of stress.
Another important aspect to prevent child stress is to involve them in solving everyday and family problems, promoting Simple, realistic and optimistic way to face these kinds of challenges.
In this way, the child will develop a pattern of behavior governed by acceptance and consistency about problems.
When a child has begun to suffer from stress or is in a situation that can start their illness, it is important to listen to and value their opinions.
Although young children should not decide what activities they do and do not do in full, knowing their opinions can be very Beneficial to detect possible areas and events that can stress you.
On the other hand, it is also important to respect the"rhythm of the child", avoid making comparisons with his brothers or friends, underestimate his qualities or Recriminating his abilities and skills.
Finally, in this line, parents should prevent their child from believing that he is valued, respected and loved by having a perfect performance in what he does.
This factor can cause a lot of stress in the child so he should be motivated to strive and demand the performance he is able to achieve, but Never saturate or base the relationship between father and children in these terms.
References
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- Adam, E. K., Klimes-Dougan, B. and Gunnar, M. (2006). Social regulation of stress physiology in infancy, childhood and adulthood: Implications for mental health and education. In D. Coch, G. Dawson and K. Fischer, Human Behavior and the Developing Brain: Atypical Development. New York: Guilford Press.
- Barrett, S. and Heubeck, B.G. (2000). Relationships between school hassles and uplifts and anxiety and conduct problems in grades 3 and 4. Journal of Applied. Developmental Psychology, 21, 537-554.
- Cohen, L.H. and Park, C. (1992). Life stress in children and adolescents: An overview of conceptual and methodological issues. In A. M. La Greca, L. J. Siegel, J. L. Wallander and C. E. Walker (Eds.), Stress and coping in child health (pp. 25-43). New York: Guilford.
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