How Mindfulness Can Help Manage Stress
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Stress has become an almost constant companion for many of us. Whether it’s related to work, school, or family life, stress can sneak into our daily routines and negatively impact our mental health and overall wellbeing. This is especially true for children and adolescents, as they navigate developmental changes, relationships, and school pressures. Learning how to manage stress early in life is crucial for their long-term success and happiness.
One method to manage stress effectively is through mindfulness—a simple, evidence-based practice that anyone can adopt, no matter their age.
What is Mindfulness?
Mindfulness is the act of intentionally bringing your awareness to the present moment, without judgement. It involves paying attention to your thoughts, feelings, and bodily sensations as they arise, and accepting them as they are, rather than trying to change or avoid them. This practice helps ground you, making it easier to respond to situations with calmness and clarity, rather than reacting impulsively out of stress or frustration.
For children and adolescents, mindfulness can be a powerful tool. It equips them with skills to cope with overwhelming emotions, anxiety, and the everyday stressors they face both at home and in school.
The Science Behind Mindfulness and Stress Reduction
Research into mindfulness has consistently shown its benefits for stress management. A 2018 study published in Mindfulness found that mindfulness-based interventions led to significant reductions in stress and anxiety among children and adolescents, while improving their overall psychological wellbeing .
Another key study in the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry demonstrated that mindfulness training improves emotional regulation in children, helping them manage difficult emotions like frustration, sadness, and anger .
How does this work? Mindfulness has been shown to alter brain activity. Regular mindfulness practice reduces the activity of the amygdala—the part of the brain that triggers the fight-or-flight response—while enhancing areas of the brain responsible for focus, emotional regulation, and decision-making .
Benefits of Mindfulness for Stress Management
Mindfulness offers a wide range of benefits beyond just reducing stress. Regular practice can help improve concentration, boost self-awareness, enhance emotional regulation, and even improve sleep quality. Here are some specific benefits for children and adolescents:
Better focus and attention: Mindfulness can help children concentrate better on tasks, both in school and at home.
Improved emotional regulation: By practising mindfulness, children are better equipped to manage difficult emotions like anger, sadness, and frustration.
Enhanced social skills: Mindfulness helps children become more aware of their emotions and those of others, fostering empathy and improving relationships.
Reduced anxiety and depression: Mindfulness has been shown to alleviate symptoms of anxiety and depression, helping children develop resilience and cope with life’s challenges .
Mindfulness Exercises for Children and Adolescents
Here are a few simple yet effective mindfulness exercises that children and adolescents can practise to reduce stress and increase their awareness:
1. Mindful Breathing
Mindful breathing is one of the easiest mindfulness exercises and can be done anytime, anywhere.
How to do it: Have the child sit in a comfortable position with their back straight. Ask them to close their eyes and take slow, deep breaths—inhaling through the nose for a count of four, holding the breath for a count of four, and exhaling through the mouth for a count of four. Encourage them to focus on the sensation of their breath moving in and out of their body.
Why it works: Deep breathing slows the heart rate and activates the parasympathetic nervous system, which helps the body relax.
2. Body Scan
The body scan helps children tune into their bodies and identify areas where they may be holding tension.
How to do it: Have the child lie down in a comfortable position. Starting at the toes, ask them to notice how each part of their body feels, slowly moving up to their legs, stomach, chest, arms, and head. Encourage them to release any tension they notice.
Why it works: This exercise increases bodily awareness and helps release physical tension that often accompanies stress.
3. Five Senses Exercise
This grounding technique engages the senses to bring the child’s attention to the present moment.
How to do it: Ask the child to notice:
5 things they can see,
4 things they can touch,
3 things they can hear,
2 things they can smell, and
1 thing they can taste.
Why it works: Focusing on the senses helps distract from anxious thoughts and grounds the child in the here and now.
4. Gratitude Journaling
Encouraging children to focus on gratitude can help shift their perspective away from stress.
How to do it: Each day, ask the child to write down three things they are grateful for. These could be simple, like a favourite meal, or more profound, like time spent with family or friends.
Why it works: Research shows that practising gratitude improves mood, reduces stress, and encourages positive thinking .
How to Make Mindfulness a Daily Habit
Incorporating mindfulness into your child’s daily routine doesn’t need to be complicated. Here are a few tips:
Encourage a few minutes of mindful breathing before bed.
Practise mindfulness together as a family, such as doing a body scan or reflecting on what you're grateful for at the end of each day.
Offer reminders to pause and take deep breaths when stress or anger arises.
Mindfulness is a simple but powerful tool for managing stress, especially for children and adolescents. Through exercises like mindful breathing, body scans, and gratitude journaling, young people can develop emotional resilience and learn to process their feelings in a healthy way. By incorporating mindfulness into their daily routines, children not only manage stress more effectively but also develop skills that will benefit them throughout their lives.
Authors: Brodi Killen, Stephanie Mace and Samantha Pearce
Educational and Developmental Psychologists and Counselling Psychologist - With You Allied Health Directors