Does your child have the first day of school jitters? Learn more about school anxiety from David Rue, M.D., Child Psychiatrist, Sutter Center for Psychiatry.
Signs of Anxiety:
• Attitude of indifference about school.
• Not enthusiastic about school shopping or talking about school.
• Trouble falling asleep.
• Sudden physical complaints on the morning of the first school day, such as stomachache, headache, etc.
Common fears:
• Being separated from parents.
• Fear that something bad may happen to their parents while they are in school.
• Scary teachers and/or janitors.
• Mean kids.
• Spooky bathrooms.
Preparing your child for their first day:
• Separate from and reunite with your child.
• Take a car ride to school.
• Walk through the campus, including the bathroom, before school starts.
• Ask the teacher for an autographed picture.
• Arrange a brief welcome-to-school phone call from the teacher.
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