Your child seemed excited about the prospect of daycare, but when you dropped them off on their first day, they went into a severe panic attack. This actually happens to children more than you'd think and managing it requires a careful understanding of what causes it.
What Caused The Panic Attack?
If your child starts screaming and panicking the moment you leave them at daycare, there's a good chance they suffer from high levels of anxiety. This problem often manifests itself into separation anxiety, which often occurs in very young children when they are left without their parents. This anxiety can manifest itself into a severe panic attack that can make it impossible for your child to adjust to daycare.
Where does this anxiety start? Think of your child and who they spend most of their time with. It's likely they have rarely, if ever, spent more than a few hours away from you before daycare. And if they did spend time away from you, it was likely with a friend or family member who they knew and trusted to take care of them.
Anxiety originates as a form of stress, and a child being separated from their mother and placed into a new environment with new people may suffer from a sudden increase in stress and anxiety that leads to a full blown panic attack. So if your child is kicking and screaming when you leave, don't take it as signs of being spoiled, but of a serious problem that has to be addressed before they can be left in any child care situation.
How To Make It More Positive
The trick to managing this panic attack is to make as little fuss about dropping off your child at the daycare center as possible. Remain positive, supportive, and happy with them and spend an hour or two hanging out with them and bonding with them before you drop them off. This often gives them the mommy time they need to feel comfortable before daycare.
Make sure that you stay positive about the drop off, as your child may react to your emotions and get anxious if you too feel worried. Spend some time exploring the daycare with them, interacting with potential friends, and introducing them to their caregivers. Meeting these new situations with you will make them more manageable and easier to handle later on by themselves.
Most importantly, make sure you say goodbye to them in a casual and friendly way and be excited to see them when you pick them up. It might take some time for your child to develop the skills to avoid a panic attack, but separation like this often requires a little time and a lot of effort to maintain.
Share30 August 2016
Hello, my name is Aaron. Welcome to my site. I am excited to talk to you about the process of supporting your child during the transition to child care outside of the home. When children start going to daycare or preschool, they need assistance making the transition or meltdowns could ensue. You can help your kid adjust to the changes without strife by following the tips on my site. Please feel free to utilize the tactics I provide to keep your kid feeling supported and loved during this abrupt change. Thank you for visiting my site. I hope to see you again soon.