7 ways to support mental health for your child during covid-19 school returns

As the COVID-19 outbreak has reached its peak, many children are returning to school. The stress of being around classmates who may be infected or have been exposed is difficult for anyone, but this can be compounded by mental health issues that existed before COVID-19 was introduced. In this article, I am going to share 7 ways you can help your children with their mental health as they navigate school and covid-19.

What are the psychological effects of COVID-19 on children?

Before we dive into how you can support your children during the coronavirus pandemic, let’s discuss what the psychological effects are on children.

While children are more resilient than adults, they do have a difficult time coping with scary or stressful events. The coronavirus pandemic may be frightening to the child and we must take care in navigating these feelings together as parents while keeping them informed about what’s going on around us.

Firstly, let’s discuss some psychological effects of someone who has TESTED POSITIVE for the coronavirus.

The effects on a child who has tested positive for the coronavirus can vary. Some children will experience anxiety, separation from friends and family members out of fear they might catch it themselves or have to take care of their sick loved ones around them, while others may report feeling numb about what’s happening in society due to having been exposed at such an early age – only time would tell how each individual is affected once symptoms become present.

Secondly, how can the coronavirus pandemic affect a child’s mental health?

If your child does not have COVID-19, they are less likely to experience mental health issues.

However, if your child has been exposed and is nervous about their symptoms or how they will be treated by others- make sure you reassure them that there’s nothing wrong with being anxious during these tough times as this can become a fear of the unknown for some kids who have grown up in an environment where anxiety disorder was not openly talked it – all children may need extra support knowing COVID19 could potentially affect anyone at any time!

My child is scared to go back to school. How can I help them feel at ease? 

With children going back to school, it is important to keep in mind the emotional toll that it may take on them. A child who is already struggling with mental health issues has a higher risk of feeling scared and anxious about returning to school, so we need to be there for our children during this time by helping their anxiety levels or other emotions they are experiencing at an even more heightened level than before COVID. Here are 7 things you can do to help your children feel more at ease:

1. Remind children of the positives.

Remind them that they have a support system, and encourage your children to reach out if their experience is not the best. If all your children are hearing is the negatives and how difficult things are, their thoughts and experiences will be even worse.

Here are a few things your children can say, and a few things that you can say to help them build positivity.

If they are experiencing any levels of panic, fear, or worry about school and COVID-19, encourage them to look at a positive side instead: “What would you like this year’s new experience in life to be?” Give each child an opportunity for hope by asking questions such as what do we know? What can’t happen now because it already did last time around?”, etcetera.

Your intention is not just to stimulate thinking but also to reassure you that everything will work out okay. Offer suggestions on how parents might help decrease negative thoughts while increasing opportunities.

If you are looking for more things that you can say, and further advice on how to speak positively to your child, check out this great article – 50 things you can say to encourage a child

2. Encourage activities outside of school.

Another way that you can help your children cope with returning to school during the Covid-19 pandemic, is to promote pursuits outside going back into education. Encourage your child to pursue other interests and hobbies.

Here are a few fun things that you can try out!

a) Cooking classes or hobby-building activities depending on the age of the child and what is available.

b) Sports clubs where they can meet new people in the community while still taking part in safe practices.

c.) Volunteering opportunities at local organizations that are continuing operations despite COVID19’s presence

d) Arts & crafts sessions led by parents

3. Make sure that the environment that your kids are in is safe and welcoming.

This means making sure that the children feel like their needs can be met, by having a teacher or other adult who cares for them to give all of his/her attention when needed at this time.

This also means that when kids come back to school, they need the peace of mind in knowing it has been cleaned and disinfected from COVID-19.

4. Discuss possible reactions with your kids.

One way we could prepare our kids would be discussing possible reactions (anger! sadness!) but emphasizing ways each mood feels inside us physically & emotionally vs outside ourselves. If it helps talk about things happening on TV because then it’s not just headlines and hearsay that they are believing.

It also may mean working with your child before school starts so he knows what will happen when the COVID-19 classroom returns–what you should expect from teachers as well how much homework there might already have been assigned since last year’s Covid season.

5. Make sure your children are getting a healthy amount of fresh air and exercise.

If sports teams and recreational activities are not available, there are plenty of alternatives that can help your child’s mental state of mind. School and covid-19 can lead to anxiety and depression and exercise is a critical element to improving a state of mind.

* Play outside as often you are able. Bring them to the park, go for walks or bike rides together–anything that gets your children moving and breathing fresh air!; Make sure they have plenty of room when playing inside so their lungs won’t get compressed.; Encourage active play like running around with friends. If all else fails find any excuse possible – “let’s do jumping jacks!” will work just fine :).

If you are unsure of some workouts that you can do at home, check out this article that dives into some at-home workouts designed for life at home. Again, be cautious of the age of your child, but pick and choose from this list if you need some assistance check this post out

6. Make sure your child is aware of all the rules and ways in which we can prevent the spread of the virus.

One thing that will help support the mental health of your child, is by ensuring they are not making other kids uncomfortable around them. Teach them to ask permission before touching other people, and remind your child that they are not the only person who has to be careful of Covid-19.

We can do this by making sure our children know all of COVID’s rules! For instance, make it clear which items or places we need their hands washed after contact with (like a toy) may have been shared during playtime at school). We also want kids in handwashing stations for 20 seconds: time enough to ensure adequate coverage over fingers/hands ; ). Remind everyone about how important these things will be when sharing snacks–we don’t ever see one another eat without washing up first – so why would you think anything differently on healthy food?; Encourage active cleaning methods like spraying down surfaces.

7. As a parent, you are responsible to make handwashing a regular occurrence in your household.

This is something that you can have fun with. Washing hands does not have to be scary or intimidating. You can make it fun.

Purchase some colorful soap and hand sanitizer from the store or create your own natural soaps with essential oils at home for a pleasant scent to get everyone excited about washing their hands in this new way! (This is also great if you have sensitive skin). Have some fun with it!

Play music while they wash up, dynamically changing tracks as each person finishes; use upbeat songs during meal times when there are more people around chatting amicably after eating together:)

Songs that promote cleanliness like “My Humps” by Black Eyed Peas will do wonders too ;)! The point of all these choices? To keep things exciting enough where kids won’t need reminders–they’ll be eager instead!

How can I gently check in to see how my child is coping?

One very important thing is to make sure you check in to see how your child is coping and adjusting to the new rules and regulations at school. You can do that by finding out what they are and aren’t comfortable talking about.

It is also important to know the signs of mental health issues that children experience during COVID-19 school returns, so you can help them get treatment as soon as possible if needed:) !

These include drastic changes in moods (being extremely happy one day then sad or angry another), not sleeping well at night due to excessive worrying; difficulty concentrating on tasks because their mind keeps racing with thoughts unrelated to anything else going around…! It’s okay for your child(ren) to feel these things– it just means it’ll take a little more effort from everyone involved until everything settles down again.

If you are looking for additional resources on how you can help your child with their mental health, there are plenty of online resources for assistance. Try looking at a website such as https://www.caringforkids.cps.ca/handouts/mentalhealth/mental_health.

If my child has to learn through videos and online, how can I help them stay focused?

If your kids have to learn through videos or online, it can be difficult for them to stay focused. There are a few ways that may help:

(a). Make sure they get enough sleep the night before so their mind is refreshed and ready! We all know how hard Covid-19 school returns make us feel exhausted at times– this one will go by much faster with some good rest beforehand!

(b). One thing I recommend doing once your child has finished listening to the online learning platform; pause right after finishing where there’s no new video content coming up on screen then tell him what happened in summary form.

(c). Another way you can help your children stay focused when learning from home is if you give them the option to take breaks when they need it. I know this one is tough because parents want their kids’ grades up, but if we don’t allow our children’s minds time for a break then that will just hurt in long run!

Tips: If your child has online learning via Covid-19 school returns and would like someone more interactive who can help him think through a challenging problem or concept there are many ways he could benefit from seeing an individual therapist with experience working on education issues.

Conclusion – Helping children cope with school and covid-19:

I know times are difficult for not only your kids, but also for you as a parent, but it is your responsibility to make sure that the kids feel as comfortable and prepared as possible.

There are countless mental health challenges in today’s society, especially anxiety and stress in kids and teens due to the coronavirus, but there are also strong support systems out there if you need additional help.

It is important to remember that the pandemic will not last forever and to make sure your child’s mental health is at the forefront of your decision-making processes as a parent.

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