New Kid
School starts early in the great state of Texas. While the heat still scorches pavement and the pools still register 90 degrees, children go back to school. Being a native northerner, it just "don't feel raht", but oh well...
Anxiety rides high in the Dr. Melissa household. The kids change schools this year and everything is new. New teachers, new friends, new expectations. New. New. New.
I moved a lot as a kid. I was the "new kid" in 1st grade, 2nd grade, 3rd grade, and 4th grade, when things finally settled down (two years later it was middle school and new again). Just writing about this gives me anxiety.
The kids seem nervous about the new school. Go figure since they have such courageous, go-getters for parents.
Why does "novelty" cause such anxiety? It is not change, per se, that causes the discomfort. It is the newness of the situation. If for example, my kids were going back to their old school, they may feel a little discomfort but they "know the drill" so they tolerate it better. But the new school means adapting to unknown norms, expectations and situations.
To a greater or lesser extent we are the same way. By the way, people who handle novelty better, and this trait can be measured in babies, tend to have more life success. Does that mean the ninnies among us are doomed to live in a "van down by the river"? No, we just must learn what other, more intrepid people naturally do.
More risk=more reward. So, strap on yer boots ya'll we're goin' to school and we're gonna luv it!
Anxiety rides high in the Dr. Melissa household. The kids change schools this year and everything is new. New teachers, new friends, new expectations. New. New. New.
I moved a lot as a kid. I was the "new kid" in 1st grade, 2nd grade, 3rd grade, and 4th grade, when things finally settled down (two years later it was middle school and new again). Just writing about this gives me anxiety.
The kids seem nervous about the new school. Go figure since they have such courageous, go-getters for parents.
Why does "novelty" cause such anxiety? It is not change, per se, that causes the discomfort. It is the newness of the situation. If for example, my kids were going back to their old school, they may feel a little discomfort but they "know the drill" so they tolerate it better. But the new school means adapting to unknown norms, expectations and situations.
To a greater or lesser extent we are the same way. By the way, people who handle novelty better, and this trait can be measured in babies, tend to have more life success. Does that mean the ninnies among us are doomed to live in a "van down by the river"? No, we just must learn what other, more intrepid people naturally do.
More risk=more reward. So, strap on yer boots ya'll we're goin' to school and we're gonna luv it!
posted by Melissa Clouthier at 9:41 PM
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