LANSING, Mich. — As isolation continues, some parents are wondering if there are any negative long-term effects on our kids. Lindsey Boetsch spoke with one child psychologist about what to look for as we come out of isolation and begin thinking about how to rebound into our new normal.
For many Americans, these past few weeks have been about balancing a lot in an unprecedented time. Even just the structure of our lives is completely different. We’ve lost all of our usual support and things that just help us function as families. Psychologist Dr. Laura Anthony says this quarantine can have a big effect on kids and a new emotion your kids could be feeling is grief. They’re not able to participate in sports, clubs, or outside of school activities.
That’s a place where you’re having fun with other people, you’re learning a lot about yourself, about society, and we can’t get that back. But she says parents can help kids transition to a life that might look a little different than before the pandemic.
I think your first response as a parent is to just check in with your kid. ‘Is there anything you’re worried about, anything you’ve been thinking about, what’s happening in your mind these days.’ Do those frequent mental health check ins with your kids. She says look for behavior that is sustained… if anxiety or sadness get so extreme that your kids really aren’t functioning anymore, that’s when it’s time to reach out to a professional.
I expect we’re going to have a lot of reaching out in the days to come when it feels like we’re reaching past the crisis stage and into the “this is how it’s just going to be for a long time” I think that can be particularly hard on kids. But there aren’t just negative feelings. As we go through the pandemic, she says it’s an opportunity to build resilience.
If you want to try to look at the brighter side, I don’t think we’re going to have a whole generation of kids who are permanently damaged. What I think we’re going to have is a whole generation of kids who are really resilient.
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