Moving advice for parents

Moving can cause high levels of anxiety

Anxiety in children is very common and is linked to their temperament and various environmental factors. The effects of childhood anxiety can have a major impact throughout their life. There are a number of things parents can do to prevent anxiety in children from impairing healthy development. The effects of moving anxiety are particularly common. Losing what they may have known from birth and moving to a new neighborhood or city can cause severe trauma.

Leaving the familiar for the unknown during relocation can be stressful for everyone. Separation from friends only to encounter ackward or disconnected relationships can be depressing. There can be a sense of isolation. Social contacts could be limited. Being uprooted and loosing a sense of stability makes it hard to relax or let your guard down. Unfamiliar surroundings make it difficult to know what places are safe. If you are moving cross country, there may be culture shock as well. Taking good moving advice and applying it to your move is well worth it.

Good moving advice for parents

Every family experiences stressful life events such as school, moving, divorce, and death. Your children will go through these situations with different eyes. They will need to learn how handle the stress and uncertainty. Parents can help by and modeling a positive outlook and filtering the weight of stressful situations.

When there is a major family relocation on the horizon, help your child ahead of time to become familiar with what is taking place. Visiting the new home frequently ahead of the move is a good first step. Taking small steps is a safe way for children to experience risk and have success in coping with stressful situations. The process will have to be gradual and be carried out in a supportive, safe environment. The simple moving advice given below will reduce the fear of change.

1. Be attentive to concerns
The fear of moving is especially real for kids. Listen patiently when your children share their concerns. Let them know that you hear them and understand their fears. Recall positive experiences that you have had. Share details that show a happy and successful conclusion.

Be attentive to their reactions. Anxiety displayed in your children may be expressed through behaviors such as aggression, tantrums, defiance, or school avoidance. The tendency is to handle this behavior as independent from the new changes coming up. Dealing with the anxiety of the new event could resolve these negative issues.

2. Let them know what is going to happen
Make sure that you give quality time to your children, addressing their concerns and fears. Give them time to express their feelings. Their questions be simple at first. How far is it? Where is my new school? Is there a swimming pool near by? As they think about it more, they may ask, "Are we taking the dog?" and "Why are we moving?".

Be willing to spend the time to deal with every question. Be honest and open in sharing your own concerns as well as the positive excitement you feel about the decision to move. Modeling a confident attitude can be contageous and help your kids through this important change. Family meetings provide an opportunity for you and your children to brainstorm and communicate together.

3. Let them make decisions
Give your child a plan for their room. Providing your child with as much information as you can about the new house will help them contribute to the decision process before hand, such as where to place furniture and what color to paint their walls. Encourage them to make cut-outs of everything in their room so they can rearrange things before move day.

4. Let the kids help with the packing
Ask them to make decisions on what to take and what to throw away. Give them the option of selling items at a garage sale. For belongings to be moved, show the children how to pack and label each box. Children will find it easier to do these tasks if the entire family is also involved. Packing may be a drudgery for some. Plan fun activities to reward them like having a movie night.

5. Let your children Say Goodbye
Leaving does not mean that your children can't stay in contact with the people they know. Setup a special address book for neighbors, friends, and others that they know. You as parents can do the same thing. Remind them know that they can easily stay in touch from their new location.

Still, saying goodbye is going to be hard. Help your child plan how they want to say fairwell. Some may want a fun outing while others prefer having a few close friends over for a special party. You can plan multiple events for different friends or groups to you have spent time with. Saying goodbye is an important step in showing that you care about your childrens feelings and for their friends. This will also reduce the shock of transitioning into a new culture and environment.

6. Do your children look back with longing
After being in the new environment for several weeks, there could still be high levels of anxiety. The sense of loss becomes more acute as children miss their friends and familiar activities. Symptoms of anxiety can include sadness, complaining and irritability. Reduce this trauma by encouraging your kids to get involved with new activities or invite new acquintences over to the house.

Anxiety quotes about change

The key to change... is to let go of fear.” -- Rosanne Cash

“Moving on, is a simple thing, what it leaves behind is hard.” -- Dave Mustaine

Each time we face our fear, we gain strength, courage, and confidence in the doing.” --Unknown

“Tears are words the heart can't express” --Unknown

Always do what you are afraid to do. -- Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Even though we've changed and we're all finding our own place in the world, we all know that when the tears fall or the smile spreads across our face, we'll come to each other because no matter where this crazy world takes us, nothing will ever change so much to the point where we're not all still friends.”--Unknown

“Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened.” --Dr. Seuss

Best life quotes about moving on

Anxiety in children can sometimes freeze them to the point where they stop doing anything. They are told that everything is ok, but they don't believe it. Parents need to be patient. It may take time for a child to see that the hurdle is approachable and can be overcome. Here are some quotes of life perspectives that will encourage both parent and child:

When the door of happiness closes, another opens. But often times we look so long at the closed door that we don't see the one which has been opened for us. -Unknown

What seems like the right thing to do could also be the hardest thing you have ever done in your life.

We must be willing to let go of the life we have planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us. -E.M. Forster

Moving on, is a simple thing, what it leaves behind is hard.- Dave Mustaine

Remember:Success comes to the one that acts

You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself 'I have lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.' You must do the thing you think you cannot do. -Eleanor Roosevelt

The two hardest things to say in life are hello for the first time and goodbye for the last.

Final Thoughts about moving advice

Planning the moving process carefully is important for reducing stress and anxiety in children. Getting valuable moving advice will make the relocation smoother for your kids.

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Common stressors Sub-catagories:

Causes of Anxiety

  Pregnancy Stress
  School Pressures
  Overcoming fears
  Work vs. Family
  Sudden Job loss
  Moving Trauma
  Anxiety Symptoms
  Tight Budget
  Death of loved one