Yoga for Anxiety: Helping Kids Feel Calm and Grounded When They Feel Anxious

Every parent knows how hard it is to watch their child struggle. As anxiety in children becomes a growing challenge, parents are often scrambling for a solution. Thankfully, yoga for kids provides a simple yet profoundly helpful way to address a child’s everyday worries.

Learn more about how yoga can help children manage their anxiety and what simple poses you can try in an introductory session.

Understanding Anxiety in Kids

Anxiety affects between 6.5% and 25% of children, or about 1 in 8 children [*]. It’s more common in females. Children with anxiety experience symptoms that occur in three different ways.

• Physical symptoms: complaining about stomachaches or headaches, shakiness, tense muscles, rapid heart rate, sweating, dizziness, shortness of breath
• Emotional symptoms: excessive worrying, constantly expecting the worst, struggling to concentrate, feeling nervous, crying a lot, refusing to talk
• Behavioral symptoms: avoiding any situation that triggers anxiety, trouble sleeping, being restless and fidgety, clinging to parents and other trusted adults, using the toilet frequently, and changes in appetite

While some children are naturally sensitive, it’s more common for anxiety to occur in response to specific triggers, such as the following:

• Complex family and home life, such as abuse, neglect, death of a loved one, parental anxiety, and family conflict
• Poor school and social life resulting from academic pressures, bullying, large or overwhelming social gatherings, and separation anxiety with parents or caregivers
• Temperamental disposition to anxiety
• Specific, intense fears of certain situations, objects, people, or places

How Yoga Helps Kids Manage Anxiety

For years, yoga has been proven effective in alleviating anxiety by calming the mind through physical poses, breathing exercises, and mindfulness practices.

According to a study by the NYU Grossman School of Medicine, Kundalini yoga (also known as “yoga of awareness) was found to be more effective for anxiety than stress management. This type of yoga combines movement and breathwork to strengthen the nervous system and awaken dormant energy.

Of the participants in the pool, 54% who practiced yoga reported improved symptoms, compared to 33% in the stress education group [*].

The study successfully showed that, at least in the short term, yoga can be an effective alternative intervention for children with anxiety. Paired with mindfulness practices, yoga can also improve emotional regulation, as children develop better self-control and self-awareness.

Simple Yoga Poses to Help Kids Feel Calm and Grounded

When choosing yoga poses to try with your child, ensure you’re picking something age-appropriate and not overly complex. Here are a few you can do together.

Child’s Pose

This is a fundamental yoga pose appropriate for children of all ages. It provides an opportunity to reset the body and mind.

How to do it:

1. Have your child start on their hands and knees. Ensure they spread their knees as wide as their mat and keep the tops of their feet on the floor.
2. Rest their belly between their thighs and have them place their forehead on the floor. Ask them to reach their arms forward and place their hands flat on the ground.
3. Keep them in this pose for a few seconds and ask them to focus on their breathing while quieting the mind.

Downward Dog

Downward dog provides a great way to introduce flexibility, strength, and balance to a child. It also enhances body awareness and improves focus.

How to do it:

1. Start on the hands and knees (similar to the table pose).
2. Have your child tuck their toes under their feet and lift their hips. Straighten the knees so that their body makes an inverted V.
3. Take a few breaths in this position before bending the knees and returning to the table pose.

Reclined Pigeon Pose

The reclined pigeon pose helps relax tension in the body, which provides a welcome release when your child is feeling stressed. This reversed position is better for children who are still finding their center and learning balance.

How to do it:

1. Have your child lie on the ground with their knees bent and feet flat on the floor.
2. Cross the left foot over the right quad and place the left ankle below the right knee.
3. Lift the right foot so the shin is parallel to the ground. Hold the back of the right leg close to the chest.
4. Hold for a few seconds, then let go and repeat on the other side.

Tree Pose

This balance pose helps kids feel grounded and reduces anxious feelings. It puts them in a position to practice deep body awareness.

How to do it:

1. Stand with the feet together and the knees slightly bent. Bring the hands to the hips and palms together in front of the heart.
2. Shift the weight onto the right foot and slowly lift the left foot. Bend the left knee and open it to the left side.
3. Place the sole of the left foot against the ankle, calf, or upper thigh—whatever your child can manage.

Mountain Pose

The mountain pose represents strength. It’s another grounding pose that teaches children to feel more present in their bodies.

How to do it:

1. Stand with the feet shoulder-length apart. Put a slight bend in the knees.
2. Shrug the shoulders up by the ears. Ask your child to imagine their shoulder blades coming together and relaxing outward.
3. Have the arms hang by the sides.
4. Breathe deeply for 30 seconds to a minute and repeat several times.

Combining Yoga With Mindfulness

Yoga and mindfulness go hand in hand by combining physical sensation with mental awareness. Applying mindfulness to yoga turns physical activity into a non-judgmental space for observing thoughts, sensations, and movement.

When combining yoga with mindfulness, start small. Introduce your child to mindfulness through simple breathing exercises, such as belly breathing or rainbow breathing. As they practice these breaths, encourage them to quiet the mind while being aware of their immediate environment.

Once your child is comfortable with these breathing exercises and has started engaging in yoga poses, introduce affirming mantras. For example, as they breathe, ask them to repeat positive affirmations like:

• I am strong.
• I am safe.
• I can do it.
• I am loved.

Encourage your child to create mantras that are most relevant to them in the moment. Try connecting these mantras. For instance, if your child decides they want to use the mantra “I am strong,” you might ask them to get into a powerful grounding or warrior pose.

End each yoga session with moments for gratitude and reflection. As you wind down, do a body scan with your child. Notice any areas of tension from head to toe that now feel looser and more relaxed.

You can also introduce post-yoga practices like gratitude journaling. Dedicate just a few minutes for your child to list three things they are thankful for. Adding these post-yoga rituals to your child’s routine can deepen their connection with the physical act of yoga and their emotional and spiritual health.

The Bottom Line

While yoga is just one part of a broader approach to help alleviate anxiety in your child, it can be a welcome part of their daily routine.

Check out more of our anxiety worksheets to find activities and resources that help your child find their inner peace.

Sources:

1. Wang Z, Whiteside S, Sim L, et al. “Anxiety in Children.” Comparative Effectiveness Reviews, 2017.
2. “Yoga Shown to Improve Anxiety, Study Finds.” NYU Langone News, 2020.