How to help your child cope with academic pressure and avoid burnout; Expert offers tips

Academic pressure and burnout can be stressful for children. Here are some tips and strategies to help your child thrive academically.

Academic pressure and burnout can be significant challenges for children, and it's essential for parents to support them in managing these challenges. Coping with academic pressure and burnout can help children develop important skills and resilience that will serve them well throughout their lives. There are many tips and strategies that parents can use to help their children cope with academic pressure and burnout. By providing support and guidance, parents can help their children find balance, manage their workload effectively, and cultivate a positive mindset that promotes learning and growth. Let's explore some practical tips for parents to support their children in managing academic pressure and avoiding burnout.

As parents, it's natural to want our children to succeed academically, but it's also important to ensure they don't become overwhelmed by pressure and burnout. (Pexels )

How parents can help their kids manage academic stress:

"Academic pressure is triggered by a combination of academic-related demands that exceed an individual’s adaptive resources. Academic pressure from parents and teachers, as well as children who are concerned about their careers and future, results in stress, depression, and burnout when they are unable to cope with the situation or satisfy their needs. Academic pressure symptoms include a state of alarm and the release of adrenaline – short-term resistance as a coping mechanism, and exhaustion, along with irritability, muscle tension, difficulty concentrating, inadequate sleep at night, poor appetite, low immunity, and a variety of physiological reactions like headache and increased heart rate," says, Pragati Goyal, Lead Clinical Psychologist at Lissun, in a conversation with HT Lifestyle.

Talking about the role and responsibilities of parents, Pragati says, "It is broadly acknowledged that parents and teachers play an essential role in the cognitive, social and emotional development of their children. Through their role, they provide children with socialisation to cultural and societal norms and values meant to prepare them for the navigation of the communities in which they reside. Whereas their engagement leads to better social adjustment and academic achievement, over-aspiration and a negative attitude led to academic pressure among students. For instance, when children fail to meet the expected standards, they are accused of being sluggish or dull, which creates a sense of inferiority in adolescents and can lead to drastic outpourings in the form of mental disorders, depression, stress, and academic burnout. Academic burnout is a syndrome of emotional exhaustion and cynicism that is common among students who do “people work.”

She further shared “Parents and teachers should recognise and monitor these conditions in their children, as well as take action to avoid unsettling and discouraging factors. Parents and teachers should also let go of old, obsolete, and traditional ideas about education and jobs and provide their children with new opportunities to grow. Children ought to be motivated to follow their passions and work hard to achieve their goals in whatever field they select.”

“More importantly, both organizational and personal prevention precautions are needed in order to get rid of the psychological and physical symptoms of academic pressure and burnout. These include: being aware of a child’s behaviours and emotions; building trust with children; encouraging the expression of feelings; encouraging healthy and diverse friendships; encouraging physical activity, good nutrition, and rest and providing necessary administrative support,” concludes Pragati.