Eloah Rocha is a child counselor at Los Angeles Children’s Hospital with two decades of experience supporting children and families. Since 2004, she has supervised the hospital’s youth activity center for siblings of patients, helping create supportive environments for children navigating challenging family circumstances. Eloah Rocha has also participated in research focused on patient-sibling interactions and the experiences of children and adolescents coping with a sibling’s illness. Her work centers on understanding the emotional and psychological impact of serious health conditions on families and identifying approaches that may help reduce stress and improve well-being. With a background in child psychology and ongoing involvement in community programs that support children, her professional experience provides a relevant connection to the topic of childhood anxiety and the factors that can influence a child’s emotional health.
Understanding Child Anxiety
Childhood anxiety is a natural response to stress and often shows up as fear, worry, or uneasiness. However, when those fears become persistent, intense, or out of proportion and begin to interfere with a child’s daily life, they may indicate an anxiety disorder that affects social functioning, well-being, and school performance.
Children with anxiety disorders often show physical, behavioral, and emotional symptoms. Physical symptoms can include headaches, stomachaches, difficulty sleeping, and a rapid heartbeat. Behavioral symptoms may include avoiding activities, refusing to go to school, needing repeated reassurance, or becoming unusually clingy with parents or caregivers. Emotional signs can include irritability, excessive worry, and repeated thoughts that something bad is going to happen.
Genetics and environmental factors influence a child’s susceptibility to anxiety. Children born in families with prevalent cases of anxiety have a high probability of developing this disorder.
Environmental factors include the stressful events a child experiences at home and in school. Parental conflicts, academic pressure, illness, and relocation can trigger anxiety symptoms in children. Overprotective or highly critical parenting styles also inadvertently reinforce anxiety. School dynamics, like poor peer relationships and bullying, further contribute to child anxiety.
Notably, toddlers can also experience anxiety, often manifesting as frequent crying and bedwetting, and separation distress where the absence of a parent makes the child uneasy. If left untreated, child anxiety negatively affects a child’s development, and this is evident in their academic performance and physical health. Academically, anxious children struggle to concentrate and dread participating in learning activities, like asking and answering questions.
Effective parenting intervention can help manage a child’s anxiety in the early stages. Parents should foster open communication with their children, encourage them to talk about their feelings, and normalize emotional expression. Parents should listen without judgment, validate their child’s fears, and provide reassurance without dismissing their concerns.
Parents should also teach coping skills to help children calm their bodies and minds when facing stressful events. Deep breathing can be a useful technique, because slow and steady breaths may help reduce physical tension. Children can also benefit from learning ways to respond differently to fearful thoughts rather than being overwhelmed by them.
Avoidance strengthens anxiety over time. Parents should therefore encourage and guide the gradual exposure of their children to their source of anxiety. For instance, a child who fears dogs might start by looking at pictures of dogs, watching videos, visiting parks where dogs are at a distance, and eventually interacting with a friendly dog. Parents should ensure the exposure is slow and that they are around the child.
Additionally, establishing routines for children can help minimize anxiety. Children often feel safer when routines such as waking up, eating, and doing homework are predictable. Regular routines can be reassuring and help support healthy habits. Adequate sleep is also important for a child’s mental well-being.
After implementing these interventions, if a child still has worsening symptoms or anxiety that is interfering with daily life, parents should consult a mental health professional. These experts can assess the child’s needs and recommend appropriate treatment. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a widely used treatment for childhood anxiety. It can help children learn coping skills, think differently about fears, and face challenges in manageable steps over time.
About Eloah Rocha
Eloah Rocha is a child counselor at Los Angeles Children’s Hospital, where she has worked for two decades supervising the youth activity center for siblings of patients. She has participated in research examining patient-sibling interactions and the experiences of children coping with a sibling’s illness. Ms. Rocha holds a bachelor of science degree in child psychology from Boulder University and remains active in community initiatives that support children through after-school programs, educational assistance, and charitable events.
