How to help my child who has anxiety because of the CoronaVirus? Answers from a Licensed Therapist in Long Beach.
Kids in LBUSD are out of school until AT LEAST April 20th. The governor of California just announced that he believes that kids are likely going to be out of school for the rest of this school year. This whole CoronaVirus pandemic is leaving many kids worried. School is often times the most reliable thing kids have, even for kids who have very structured homes. Literally as I am typing this, my child just told me “this social isolation is getting to me”.
When does school ever close? No matter how much your child has wished school would close or how much they might have wished to do online school before, this is not like summer vacation. They didn’t receive any notice, they didn’t really get to say goodbye to friends, and they didn’t get to look forward to it like they would summer vacation where they get to look forward to hanging out with friends, going to camp or looking forward to planned vacations. They were told last week on Friday “you aren’t coming back for a long time” without a ton of answers. Then they get home and are told “you can’t go out of the house”, “you can’t see your friends”, “you can’t see your grandparents” and “don’t use too much toilet paper”.
Take yourself back to being a kid. How would you have felt at that age?
One of our specialties is working with kids. We offer online “facetime” therapy for kids and also for parents who are trying to help their kids to not feel so anxious. It might only be a one time therapy session to teach you and/or your child some techniques to help with worrying. It might be a few sessions or more. Whatever you are needing, we are here to support you.
Here are some tips to get you started:
(1) Build structure in your day. Plan at home activities at certain times of the day: art projects, board games, play video games with your kids, if you work from home start calling your kids your co-workers. Take this opportunity to bond with your kids. Also, let them have a little more time during the day doing things you might usually limit (like TV or videogame time).
(2) Don’t have the news on all the time because kids don’t need to hear non-stop how people are sick and dying all over the world in the background while they are trying to live their life. They just need to know that it is your job to keep them safe and their job to be a kid. Watch the news when they go to bed or read the news on your phone. If you have the news on, limit how long it is on and then engage with your kids. Ask them their opinion about what the news said.
(3) Ask your child if they have any questions about what is happening and offer them age-appropriate honest answers. If you aren’t sure what to say, set up a one time appointment with a therapist who can help you with how to answer those questions. With access to the internet and social media, kids tend to know enough of what is going on to scare them.
(4) Let your kids know that this is probably going to be the new normal for several months. If they have their hopes up that it will end in a few days or weeks, and then that doesn’t happen, it will create more anxiety for them. It also will encourage them to sink into a new routine. Age-appropriate honesty usually is hard for kids to hear but not being able to trust information that their parents are giving them creates more anxiety than the truth can ever create.
(5) If you think your child is anxious, call/text us to make an appointment. You don’t even have to leave your home.
(6) If YOU are anxious, your child is likely to get anxious as well. Kids are great at being able to read their parents. Please call/text us to make an appointment for yourself.
To schedule an appointment call/text: 562.310.9741.