Executive Function Basics: The Stress Response And Our Brain
By Jessica Predy, BA Theraputic Recreation Therapy
As discussed in part one of this series, experiences impact brain development in various ways. Another notable determinant of brain health and successful future learning is how children and youth perceive and cope with stressful experiences. You may be asking yourself “what kind of stress could children possibly have at age 4, 8, or even 12 years old?”. To help you understand better, let’s first consider a popular definition of stress:
“Stress is the nonspecific response of the body to any demand, whether it is caused by, or results in, pleasant or unpleasant conditions.” -Hans Selye
In other words, the stress response can be different from person to person and is a natural reaction to some sort of demand in one’s environment. Although stress is more commonly is associated with negative outcomes, not all stress is bad. Positive stress comes from small challenges which prepare us for future trials (Alberta Family Wellness Initiative, 2023). This might be meeting new people or a fire drill at school- both of which can result in positive outcomes and help navigate larger challenges down the road. Regular experiences of positive stress, in combination with healthy coping tools, can build resilience, cognitive flexibility, and adaptation skills which promote healthy stress responses in the future (Harvard University, 2015).
Adverse reactions, however, can be an outcome of both emotional stress (which often stems from situations like death or illness) and chronic stress (which is ongoing and linked to systemic challenges such as poverty, racism, or abuse), having significant effects on developing brains. Without adequate protective factors, these types of toxic stressors can lead to maladaptive responses and coping strategies as well as a direct impact on brain function; leading to possible learning challenges, anxious or depressed behaviors, or difficulty with sleep and emotional regulation (Harvard University, 2023). Alternatively, Kelder et al. (2017) shared that greater Executive Function (EF) provided potential mediating effects for traumatic or stressful experiences. That said, experiences which help children identify and cope with stress are pivotal to future learning and overall quality of life. Mindfulness is one coping strategy which can help to reduce the impacts of stress in children and adolescents; also, being found to have positive impacts on inhibitory control and working memory (Geronimi et al., 2020). However, consider the following an introduction, and know that there are many other healthy alternatives to coping with stress. Everyone is different and there is no universal stress reducer; half the fun is discovering what works best for you. Building Brains Together offers additional resources, information, and opportunities in the community- take a look if your interested in discovering more or feel free to reach out to our team for additional support.
MINDFULNESS
Mindfulness is a process which has gained much attention over the last few years. Its purpose is to bring awareness to the present moment by means of focusing on the senses and our breath with the aim of gaining control over certain mental processes. Fuchs et al. (2017) provided evidence that implementation of mindfulness-based strategies can help reduce a range of stress in children, increase executive function and create better behavioral climates within classrooms.
The easiest way to introduce mindfulness to children and youth is not to develop a rigorous meditation program (a challenge even for those skilled in mindful techniques) but begin by first learning to bring awareness to our bodies. Imagine attempting to identify how you experience a stressful situation with no way of expressing how you feel. Pretty tough! Here are 5 simple steps to start incorporating mindfulness into your life:
1. Start by reflecting on and discussing different feelings or emotions.
2. Talk about experiences felt to be connected to those responses.
· Both positive and negative experiences
· Depending on age, there are various ways to go about this, from games to journaling or simply a conversation.
· How are these experiences felt in the body- breathing fast, quickened heartbeat, tense muscles, difficulty speaking?
3. Next explore things that help to feel better when we are feeling this way.
· What works?
· What doesn’t?
4. Discover new coping strategies:
· Breathing techniques- box breathing, belly breathing
· Activities or actions- going for a walk outdoors, listening to music, yoga or stretching, coloring
· Sensory or grounding techniques- 5 senses or playing with slime
· Guided meditation
5. Consider creating a reference to refer to when you or your child are experiencing feelings of stress. A list on the fridge or a picture book to look at with ideas which have worked before. Difficulty making decisions is common when feelings of stress are present (Galvan & Rahdar, 2013); creating a reference can eliminate the added stress of thinking about a coping strategy to use, making it easier to incorporate into daily life.
References
Fuchs, W. W., Mundschenk, N. J., & Groark, B. (2017). A promising practice: School-based mindfulness-based stress reduction for children with disabilities. The Journal of International Special Needs Education, 20(2), 56-66. https://doi.org/10.9782/2159-4341-20.2.56
Galván, A., & Rahdar, A. (2013). The neurobiological effects of stress on adolescent decision making. Neuroscience, 249, 223-231. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroscience.2012.09.074
Geronimi, E. M. C., Arellano, B., Woodruff-Borden, J. (2019). Relating mindfulness and executive function in children. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 25(2), 435-445. https://doi.org/10.1177/1359104519833737
Harvard University. (2014). Excessive Stress Disrupts the Architecture of the Developing Brain. Center on the Developing Child. Stress Disrupts the Architecture of the Developing Brain (harvardcenter.wpenginepowered.com)
Harvard University. (2015). Supportive Relationships and Active Skill-Building Strengthen the Foundations of Resilience. Center on the Developing Child. Resources » Alberta Family Wellness Initiative
Op den Kelder, R., Van den Akker, Alithe L., Geurts, H. M., Lindauer, R. J. L., & Overbeek, G. (2018). Executive functions in trauma-exposed youth: A meta-analysis. European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 9(1), 1450595-25. https://doi.org/10.1080/20008198.2018.1450595
Warren, S. L., Zhang, Y., Duberg, K., Mistry, P., Cai, W., Qin, S., Bostan, S., Padmanabhan, A., Carrion, V. G., & Menon, V. (2020). Anxiety and stress alter decision-making dynamics and causal amygdala-dorsolateral prefrontal cortex circuits during emotion regulation in children. Biological Psychiatry, 88(7), 576-586. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsych.2020.02.011