Learn a secret handshake, other tips for back-to-school health from Spira Care
As children start the school year, they may be excited about their new backpack, lunch box and outfits. But what about making sure your child is feeling physically healthy and ready to conquer any anxiety issues?
Spira Care Liberty Physician Dr. Cooper Stewart and Behavioral Health Consultant Harley Hawkins are sharing tips that parents need to help kids take care of their health as they begin a new school year.
Five tips from Dr. Stewart to help kids feel healthy at school
- Schedule an appointment with your primary care provider for your routine wellness checkup.
- Make sure to stay up to date on vaccines.
- Eat a healthy breakfast, so they don’t have poor concentration and get hungry before lunch.
- Get 9-12 hours of sleep the night before school to set up success for the next day.
- For 7-10 days before school begins, start a routine of going to bed at a reasonable time and getting up early to prepare them for the first day of school.
Reducing screen time is also important, according to Dr. Stewart, who recommends no more than two hours of screen time per day to help kids feel their best at school.
“Change for anybody, including adults and children, is a difficult thing,” Dr. Stewart said. “School is a big time for changes for kids. There are lots of new things happening. Sometimes with those changes some mood changes can come, like anxiety. Be on the lookout for subtle changes in your child’s behavior in which they are not acting quite like themselves.
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) says anxiety disorders for kids can begin in elementary school or earlier and significantly impair a child’s ability to function at their optimal level in the classroom. The AAP reports that the incidence of anxiety has risen tremendously over the past decade and now affects up to 30% of adolescents. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 1 in 5 U.S. children ages 3-17 has a mental, emotional, behavioral or developmental disorder.
At Spira Care, behavioral health consultants partner with patients’ primary care providers to support them through life’s challenges, health concerns or new diagnoses and transitions at all stages of life.
Two types of anxieties that might impact students
- Hawkins said students might face anticipatory anxiety, meaning “what if” anxiety where they dwell on a future event.
- He often recommends to “schedule your worry”, such as scheduling 30 minutes to think about what the first day will look like and how to deal with obstacles that might come up.
- Adjustment anxiety or fear of change is something students might also experience, according to Hawkins.
- Cognitive reframing skills can help reduce adjustment anxiety, such as being able to remember that we’ve done this before, that it’s not a catastrophe and that this is something that is normal and we do every year.
Five tips from Hawkins to improve mental health at school
- Come up with a secret handshake or high-five to help parents say goodbye to their kids at drop off in a fun way to ease anxiety.
- Don’t overcommunicate. Normalize the day. Our children feed off our emotions and our behaviors. Wait until you get to the car before you let the tears come.
- Set up some play dates during the summer to help with the separation anxiety.
- Do a dry run a few days before school starts. (Waking up, having breakfast, making lunch, getting to school, returning home from school)
- At home before school, it’s important to keep everything positive and relaxed. Every morning should be that way.
Preparing for back-to-school with Spira Care
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City members with a health plan that includes Spira Care have exclusive access to nine Kansas City area Spira Care centers1.
With the arrival of back-to-school season, schedule appointments at Spira Care to check these items off your family’s to-do list:
- Annual wellness visits
- Immunizations
- Sports physicals and paperwork
Wellness visits are always at no additional cost2 at Spira Care Centers. With flexible scheduling options and appointment availability3, the Spira Care team will work to find times that fit your family’s schedule. Call 913-29-SPIRA (77472) to schedule an appointment. To learn more, go to SpiraCare.com/patientresources.
If you are experiencing a medical emergency, call 911 or go to the nearest Emergency Department. In case of a mental health emergency, call or text 988.
1Health plans with exclusive access to Spira Care are available through Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City, an independent licensee of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association.
2For costs and further details of the coverage, including exclusions, any reductions or limitations and the terms under which the policy may be continued in force, members can contact their insurance producer or write Blue KC.
3Appointment availability varies based on demand and capacity at each Care Center location on any given day.
