Posted Tuesday, October 14, 2008 --- 5:22 p.m.

Academically, you want your kids to get their homework done so they can succeed.

But procrastination can actually lead to problems with anxiety.

"I finished my homework and got all my chores done and everything, I came into the living room and said 'mom I'm free!' laughs. "

13-year-old Britta Fischer didn't always feel that way.

She had *real* anxiety over the pressure to get her homework done.

Mother Julie says: "Children who suffer these sorts of things are often high performers. So at school, it's not that Britta's grades were suffering... it's that she carried that weight of wanting to make sure she did well. "

So Britta and her mom saw Dr. Marcia Slattery, a well-known child and adolescent psychiatrist with UW for some guidance.

"They can feel very much under the gun, like their performance is going to be judged, not only by the teachers but how well they do in comparison with other kids in their classroom. "

Dr. Slattery recommends treating your child's stress like your own.

First, put a positive spin on it.

"Not to go into it as a very negative experience or something we should be dreading . That already is setting up and stacking the cards against 'I don't want to do this.'"

Second, be sure to join them.

At the same time every day, turn off the TV and phone, sit at the table and pay bills or read.

"If we have something to do that we're not really fond of, it helps to have someone else that does it with us to give us moral support and help us get it done."

Britta feels much more confident and relaxed since she started a daily routine.

"I usually just come home from school, go right into my room and work on everything that I have to do."

"Relatively soon after school so that it doesn't just sort of hang in the air and almost pollute everything else that goes on in the family."

Dr. Slattery tells us that the majority of kids are equipped to deal with the stress of homework without professional help.

But if you ever think your child is suffering more than you can manage, don't be afraid to talk to your doctor.