{"id":3698,"date":"2020-03-12T15:06:35","date_gmt":"2020-03-12T22:06:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/healthykidshappykids.com\/?p=3698"},"modified":"2020-03-15T13:48:31","modified_gmt":"2020-03-15T20:48:31","slug":"talk-kids-coronavirus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vps37072.inmotionhosting.com\/~healt472\/2020\/03\/12\/talk-kids-coronavirus\/","title":{"rendered":"How To Talk With Your Kids About Coronavirus"},"content":{"rendered":"

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As we hold our collective breath, waiting to see what will happen in the coming weeks as Coronavirus continues to spread throughout the US and the world, some of us are panicking. And even if you\u2019re not panicking, someone around you is. And through this all\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n

Our children are watching & listening \u2026
\nAnd wondering if they should be panicked too.<\/span>
\n<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Kenzi, 10, and Bodi, 8, don\u2019t seem overly concerned. But I know it\u2019s on their minds. Kenzi asked me, \u201cAre we going to get Coronavirus?,\u201d and Bodi wondered, \u201cAm I going to die if I get it?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Last night, I stopped and really paid attention to our family dinner conversation, and realized just how much Coronavirus had taken over – what supplies do we need, did you hear it\u2019s now in Denver, do we have enough Vitamin C at home, a researcher said the next 2 weeks are going to be crazy, and on and on! We weren\u2019t being hysterical or saying anything that I thought was overly scary (like the latest death toll), but still – to an 8- and 10-year old, all they see is that this Coronavirus thing has their school in a bit of a frenzy and it\u2019s all their parents can talk about, so it must be pretty bad …<\/span><\/p>\n

And it actually may get pretty bad.<\/strong><\/p>\n

While I\u2019m hoping for the best, I\u2019m preparing for the worst, and want us mamas and papas to all be prepared to help our kids cope through anything that may come their way, now or in the future.<\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s why I teamed up with my very favorite child psychologist, Dr. Dawn Huebner, author of <\/span>Something Bad Happened: A Kid’s Guide to Coping With Events in the News. <\/b><\/a><\/em>to give you insight from a pediatrician and a child psychologist on how to talk with your kids about not just Coronavirus, but about any big, tragic event that may happen in and around their lives, and give your kids the tools to manage their worries and come out the other end even more resilient than before.<\/span><\/p>\n

In times of stress and crisis, our children look to <\/span>US<\/b>, their parents, to make sense of what\u2019s going on, and how they should act and react. <\/span>WE<\/b> inform them how to think and feel. <\/span>WE<\/b> inform them how to respond to their stress, and what actions are okay or not okay.<\/span><\/p>\n

Depending on our child\u2019s ages and developmental stage, they are going to have totally different understandings of what Coronavirus means to them. They are hearing truths and mistruths from their peers and grownups around them, and it is up to us, as their parents, to help them put a context to their fears and support them through this uncertain time. And believe me, they are <\/span>HEARING<\/i><\/b>, and they are <\/span>LISTENING<\/i><\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n

My 8 year-old son, Bodi, came home last night with tears in his eyes and asked, \u201cIs it true that all grandparents are going to die?\u201d – something he had heard from an 8th-grade friend. I\u2019ve heard kids wondering whether it\u2019s safe to eat Chinese food, or that they\u2019re not worried at all because it\u2019s just like having a cold. None of which is true.<\/span><\/p>\n

Our children are looking at us to interpret what\u2019s going on. They\u2019re reading our facial expressions and body language, listening to the words we\u2019re choosing, and the tone we\u2019re using. They subconsciously and consciously are modeling their stress response after ours. They lack a larger context for their fears and worries. Young children in particular are very literal. When they see us crying, scared, and angry, they are asking themselves, \u201cShould I be as sad and scared and angry?\u201d While we don\u2019t want to sugarcoat and hide the fears that we feel, it\u2019s important to remain calm and model that we can cope with this stress and anxiety positively and that it is <\/span>not<\/i><\/b> the end of the world. Our kids are looking to us to figure out whether their world is safe, whether <\/span>they<\/i><\/b> are safe.<\/span><\/p>\n

In this time of great uncertainty, the only thing that is certain is that there will be more uncertainty. So when we are reeling on the inside and filled with moments of panic and fear, what are some things that we can do to help our children maintain calm and resilience?<\/span><\/p>\n

Monitor your own reaction<\/b><\/h3>\n