Despite – or perhaps because of – the excitement, anticipation, glimmer and glitter of the holiday season, December can be a stressful time for many, including children and teens.

Maybe even more so for children and teens, especially if they’re already struggling with loss, grief, anxiety, depression, or other issues that tend to peak at this time of year. As a school counselor, you need to be ready to step in with compassionate, effective and actionable steps to help students and build a needed support network.

Help your students navigate the holiday season by helping them:

Validate Their Feelings

Be the facilitator as students learn to express their feelings and validate their emotions. You can also encourage journaling and other techniques for this purpose. Often, just being able to tell their stories helps children and teens to deal with hard truths and gain the insight they need to health and move forward.

• Try to block out some extra time to spend with specific students who may need this support. Reassure them that you care and want them to finish the semester strong and have the best possible holiday break.

Maintain Routines

Students – and people in general – thrive on routines. For some children and teens, even if their normal routine is interrupted by holiday parties or assemblies, life may get chaotic.

• Try to give students a heads up in advance if there is going to be a break in routine. Also, try and work with teachers and other faculty to ensure that no one is overextended during this busy time. Student who struggle need this structure and may crave it, especially if they don’t have it at home.

Exercise

Even brief movement, stretching and exercise can boost students’ physical and emotional health. Help students release those endorphins for a natural mood boost. Activities might include walking, hiking, jumping rope, dancing, yoga poses, or simply standing and stretching periodically throughout the day. Another option is for students to take brain breaks aka quick activities like doing a few jumping jacks.

Find and Maintain Peace

This is the bottom line, yes?

For students to find true peace this holiday season, they may need to stay away from certain people or situations, and/or cut back on social media usage. As you help students with their feelings, broach either or both these topics if appropriate.

As you implement these tactics, reinforce that your students can feel comfortable discussing triggers, stress factors, and related issues with you in a safe, supportive, and non-judgmental environment. You may be their life raft to smooth sailing through the holidays and into the new year.

Covelo Group provides extensive resources and personalized support for school counselors, therapists, teachers and healthcare professionals as they grow and develop in their careers. Contact us today to learn more or to tap into our extensive network of professionals and employers.