Identifying signs of stress in your children

Parents are advised to pay more attention to their children’s behavioral and emotional changes before the release of the exam results.

For example: Feeling nervous, worried or restless? Being over-sensitive and crying easily? Being irritable? Often feeling tired and suffering from insomnia? Loss of appetite? Unable to concentrate?

When children are willing to share their feelings and thoughts, parents are advised to be an active listener and identify any negative thoughts from their sharing.

For example: “I will ruin my future if I have failed in the examination, everyone will look down on me.” or “Everyone has high expectations of me… If I have failed in the examination, I can’t face my family and others”.

If your children are found to have a lot of negative thoughts, parents should be more supportive to them because these negative thoughts may be signs of increased stress level and anxiety.