From the Red zone to the green zone

I’m sure we can all picture a time when something happened that caused our bodies to go straight into Fight or Flight. Maybe it was seeing a snake slither across the hiking path right in front of you, another car cutting you off in traffic, or a sound in your house at night that puts you on high alert. I would also venture to guess that you can recall a time (or two!) when your child went into Fight or Flight, as well. Maybe screen time ended and your child hit you when you put the iPad away; or maybe he was playing outside, saw a bee and ran straight inside and slammed the door. Different situations can cause different responses in us as parents and in our children. ​

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​Our brains scan our environments 4 times every second. When our brains perceive a threat, we go into survival mode, and our reasoning brain goes off-line. The same thing happens in our kids. They are not able to access the parts of their brain that are responsible for thinking, feeling, learning or memory. We call this the RED ZONE. 

So what can we do, as parents, to help our children when they are in the Red Zone? Here are a few techniques and strategies we can try.

• Breathing Exercises:
  1. Belly Breathing is great for kids to learn! Have them place their hands on their belly, take a deep breath in to make their bellies grow, and then breathe out to make it smaller. Repeat.
  2. YoYo Breathing is straightforward - take a deep breath in and then let it out, followed by a deep breath in. Repeat.
• Rhythmic Movements: Movements should be simple and repetitive. Some examples are swinging, rocking in a chair, or rolling back and forth on an exercise ball.
• Exercise: Going for a walk and noticing what’s going on around us (birds chirping, wind blowing, flowers blooming) can help bring calm to their bodies.
  
  

By using strategies and techniques to help calm our child, he or she is able to access the thinking brain. Our child moves out of the Red Zone and into the Green Zone, where learning can happen. Ultimately, we want our children (and ourselves!) to spend the majority of their days in the Green Zone.

Which technique will you try the next time you are feeling in the Red? YoYo Breathing? Going for a walk? Which strategy do you think would help your child get back into the Green Zone? They need us to help them regulate when their thinking brains are off-line, so give it a try next time!
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If you need additional help or encouragement, I’d love to help, so please reach out.

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