Mom's stress guide: school-aged children

Realize that certain times of the year will be more challenging than others -- and try to budget your time and energies accordingly, particularly if you work outside of the home.
"Often, the fall is a particularly difficult time for working mothers because just as the school year is beginning the pace of the workplace also picks up,” says Aimee Israel, CEO of Lifespeak, Inc., and herself the mother of two young children. "This period can be stressful for children and parents alike."

Make routines work for your family.
"Having routines saves both time and energy," says Wendy Hall, RN, an associate professor of nursing at the University of British Columbia. "In families where there are some routines and some idea of how things are going to unfold, there tends to be less stress."

Work at creating connections with your kids.
That sense of connection can be the ultimate stress buster for them and for you. "My husband and I have both found that our kids magically ‘spill' if we spend a few minutes with them at bedtime. They tell us what they're excited about, worried about, wondering about, and so on," says Aleta Abraham, a Winnipeg mother of three.

See the other articles in this collection:
• Mom's Stress Guide: Pregnancy and birth
• Mom's Stress Guide: Babies
• Mom's Stress Guide: Toddlers and preschoolers
• Mom's Stress Guide: Teens and tweens

Ann Douglas is the author of The Mother of All Parenting Books. You can contact her via her website at having-a-baby.com.