More and more children and adolescents are experiencing the stress of our competitive and demanding world. The pressures to succeed and to meet the expectations of teachers, parents, and peers, result in a great deal of stress. The psychologists and counselors in our practice commonly see young children showing signs of depression and anxiety. It is time that we, as a society, recognize that the shocking increase in drug and alcohol abuse, and early sexual experimentation in young adolescents, are signs of stress. Left unmanaged, the potential behaviors of children and adolescents only becomes worse and usually more disabling, and in some cases life threatening. Psychological research warns us that there is a growing population of children and adolescents in trouble and at risk for developing self-destructive behaviors.

The following are some of the common Stressors frequently affecting children and adolescents:

Death of loved ones
Parental Conflicts and Divorce
Parent-child conflicts
Blended family situations
Illness in parent, sibling, or friend
Over commitment
Older sibling leaving home for college
Geographical relocation
Academic Pressures and Homework load
College application pressures
Peer Acceptance and romantic issues
Sports and social pressures
Fear of war and terrorism





The following are some of the common signs of stress in Children and Adolescents:

Poor Attention Ability
Distractibility
Lack of Motivation
Memory Interference
Reduction in Energy
Physical Symptoms
Reduction in Comprehension
Academic Skill Deterioration
Oppositional Behavior

Dr. Schachter, of the Department of Psychiatry at the New York City Mount Sinai School of Medicine, has published research showing that test anxiety is one of the most common causes of poor academic performance. Test anxiety is a result of accumulated stress from worries about grades and college acceptance. Parents spend a great deal of money for tutoring services for SAT preparation, which sometimes helps, but the critical ingredient of stress interference goes unattended. It is essential to help students manage the stress involved in taking tests such as the SSAT, PSAT, SAT, ACT, and the more advanced tests such as the medical school, graduate school, and law school admission examinations.

Research reported throughout the literature shows that there is a definite relationship between life stressors for adolescents and depression, incidence of suicide, interfering anxiety, poor school performance, and general adjustment problems. The significant effects of stress in childhood and adolescence makes it very clear that efforts to reduce and manage stress becomes increasingly important. The approaches offered by the products suggested at stressmanagementstore.com are designed to help children and adolescents cope with a wide range of stressors and to prevent stress-related problems before they arise, or to lessen them if they have already begun.

Books by Lori Lite

Wai Lana's Little Yogis