How to Help Children With Worry by Playing a Game

We all feel the debilitating effects of stress and anxiety from time to time. Sometimes, we just need a time-out from these feelings--a quick distraction that keeps a minor stressful event from creating lifelong problems. Children are no different; they feel the effects of stress and anxiety just as much as adults. In fact, it can be worse for children because they haven't yet learned the coping mechanisms for dealing with these harmful feelings. For both children and adults games can provide a much-needed distraction.

A study conducted by the University of Oxford showed that playing computer games immediately following a traumatic experience can greatly reduce the build-up of flashbacks that can occur in soldiers. The distraction provided by a game like Tetris can aid in the prevention of a full-blown case of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder. If playing a simple game like Tetris can aid in the rehabilitation of soldiers on the battlefield, imagine what it could do for a child coming home from a tough day at school.

Things You'll Need

• Puzzle
• Cooperative game

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Instructions

How to help children with worry by playing a game

• 1

  Find an easy puzzle or game that your child likes to play, one that they are good at. You can also devise your own game you can play together.

• 2

  Choose a game that gives your child specific tasks and goals to be accomplished. A game like Tetris does this. If you're making your own game, try coming up with puzzles and situations you know will raise the child's level of anxiety so you can teach him how to cope with these feelings as soon as they arise.

• 3

  Reward each accomplished task in the game. In a computer game, the reward is usually a higher score or completed level. In your own game, use treats or trinkets you know your child will like. This will compel the child to keep trying new things despite feelings of anxiety and stress. He'll learn that overcoming these feelings leads to greater rewards in life.

• 4

  Discuss the fun you had working together and the problem-solving skills the child employed during the game. Focus on strengths, not weaknesses. By illustrating what makes people different and the importance of being able to trust and rely on others in times of need, the child will learn to worry less about things he can't control and how to better manage the things she can.