In the midst of the current chaos of the world dealing with a global pandemic, parents are suddenly finding themselves juggling more challenges than ever – social distancing, working from home, home schooling their children or facilitating distance learning, and of course trying to maintain their family’s health.
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Whether your kindergartners are being encouraged to wash their hands more frequently, your middle schooler is being sent home with extra homework to prepare for school closures, or your high schooler is googling and chatting with their friends, your child has inevitably heard about the novel coronavirus. While this is an uncertain and anxiety-provoking time for everyone, it can be especially frightening for children and teens who may have limited access to reliable information. They may feel confused or worried and it is, therefore, important for parents to be able to speak to their children about this virus in a way that is both developmentally appropriate and reassuring, while also being open and honest. Here are some tips for how to most effectively speak to your children about the coronavirus:
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When a school-age child is suffering from separation anxiety disorder, the child has often expressed these fears to those closest to them, typically their parents or adults at school. In an effort to help the child, families and schools may inadvertently say or do things that worsen the child’s anxiety. While these behaviors may provide some short-term relief to the child, they often exacerbate the anxiety in the long-term. Separation anxiety disorder treatment aims to change these interactions.
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it can be difficult to tell when separation anxiety is a problem for your child. On the first day (or even the first week) of school, it’s certainly normal for a child to seem nervous or tearful when walking through their new classroom door. Parents and teachers usually chalk this up to the start of a new school year jitters.
However, for some children, this anxiety does not fade and may manifest in multiple areas of the child’s life. This can include play dates, sleepovers, or even being with caretakers other than their parents.
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Alyssa is a high school senior and member of her school’s cheerleading team. She has never had a panic attack. When lifted into the air by her teammates during practice one day, she suddenly feels very dizzy. She fears that she is going to crash to the ground. She yells to her teammates to put her down. When they do, Alyssa begins shaking, hyperventilating, and notices her heart is racing. She tells her coach she thinks there is something wrong with her and runs, terrified, to the nurse’s office. After about ten minutes, she feels better and returns to her team. However, she refuses to be lifted into the air again.
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