Holiday Calm Down Kit for Anxious Children

The holiday season is an exciting time for children and their families.  Traditions, family gatherings, parties, and so much more create lifelong memories but also add stress and anxiety to an already busy life.  Schedule changes, different sleep routines, crowds and noises, and increased visitors and family members can make the holiday season difficult for children with anxiety.

There are many ways parents can make sure that their anxious child is able to fully enjoy this special time of year.  Planning ahead, communicating openly with their child, setting realistic expectations, and providing a holiday calm down kit all help ensure a positive holiday experience.  

What is a Holiday Calm Down Kit?

Calming kits are items that can be easily put together, creating items that can be brought to situations where anxieties may be heightened due to any number of factors.  These kits include engaging times a child can use either independently or with someone else to help ease anxiety

How Calming Kits Reduce Anxiety in Children

Calming kits are created to engage the senses.  The five senses are directly tied to the brain through nerves.  By engaging the five senses, you are distracting your anxious thoughts and focusing on something more pleasurable and relaxing.  Bringing attention back to your body and your senses, lessens the repeated anxious thoughts playing over and over again in the brain.

Using the 5 Senses to Calm Anxiety

Touch–  Your skin is the largest organ in the body.  Textures create a calming stimulus that registers quickly upon contact.  Each child will have textures that are pleasing, and textures that produce an unfriendly reaction.  Knowing your child is key to providing successful objects. Be sure to include items that have unique textures, but also may vibrate or shake upon touch.  Some examples include slime, playdough, stress balls, squishies, pom poms, or textured balls

Taste and Smell– Your sense of smell and taste are directly tied to your respiratory system so they can be used to control breathing which, when done properly, eases anxiety.  Practiced, controlled breathing is the most effective way to calm anxiety and clear the negative thoughts. Breathing enjoyable smells, such as peppermint, can make deep breathing more enjoyable and successful for anxious children.  The taste of peppermint can also calm an upset stomach caused by anxiety. Chewing gum is also effective for reducing anxiety, as it provides a taste/smell and a movement. Some examples are scented slime, play dough, markers, or crayons and gum or mints.  

Sight– A picture of an enjoyable experience or scene can bring the mind to a more positive place.  Picture books allow children to engage with the story, lessening the anxiety going through their mind.  Photographs of happy experiences, during past holidays or seasons, can help reshape the anxious experience happening at the moment.  Some examples are picture books, audible books with images, family photographs, or a slide show on a handheld device.

Sound– Sound can switch the brain from anxious to calm depending on unique tastes in music.  Frequently, sounds of nature lead a to a sense of relaxation. For some children, creating a continual beat or rhythm helps calm the body and breathing.  Some examples include meditative music, favorite holiday songs, jingle bells, or rhythm sticks.

Combing the Scenes with a Holiday Calm Down Kit

In many cases, the five senses work together to calm anxiety.  Adding movement to any of the senses increases the effectiveness.  In many situations, the movement needs to be small and quiet, as to not disrupt others.   Many children enjoy playdough or slime which provides a texture and a smell, but also adds movement by pushing, pulling, stretching, and squeezing.  Having the ability to manipulate an item, in addition to enjoying what it provides to the senses, can help anxious children by providing a way to work through the anxiety without picking their skin or nails, chewing their lips, or doing large movements such as running around, that they feel they must do to reduce their anxiety.  Having an item in their hand helps improve their focus, also allowing them to work through their anxiety, anger, or frustration.

What Should I Include in My Kit?

The key here is to know your child’s likes and dislikes and provide items they find helpful and enjoyable.  With the holidays and changing of seasons, I find it helpful to gather similar items that your child is not used to seeing.  This way, the exciting new items with help distract from the anxiety as well.

My Holiday Calm Down Kit for Anxious Children

Below is a picture of a few items I purchased for my children.  I keep them in a festive box and take them as needed. All of these items were purchased at Target and Micheal’s.  Our family celebrates Christmas, so many of the items I purchased reflect this. At the above-mentioned stores, I did see very similar items reflecting Hannukkah and the season of Winter.  

Here are the items I purchased:  

Snowman Snot- Fluffy Putty

Soft Squeeze toy

Silly Scents Crayons- I also have a small notebook of blank paper with me that can be used with these crayons

Squishy Critter that lights up

Bubble Motion Timer

Winter Sand

Sculpt-e-foam

Jingle Bell

“Llama Llama Holiday Drama” by Anna Dewdney

 

Items that I made:

Cinnamon Scented Playdough

Winter Slime

These are my go-to recipes that I use for playdough and slime,  I then create the color, smell, and texture based on my need. For this holiday kit, I created cinnamon playdough and winter slime.  

Playdough Recipe from Make, Take, and Teach

Slime from Little Bins for Little Hands

I hope this gives you some ideas of ways to help your anxious child enjoy the magic of the holiday season.  Please share any ideas you have for calming kits items below to help other families.  I would also love your feedback on receiving anxiety calming kits for your children in the mail.  Is this something you would be interested in if the price was right for you?  I am currently working on putting together monthly kits to sell online for families just like mine!