There is a lot of anxiety in the air. Whether a parent is worried about what back-to-school plan a district might choose or how to keep their child and family safe during the COVID-19 pandemic, there are many questions without concrete answers.
Carle’s Neena Tripathy, MD, associate medical director of Pediatrics, said that the best thing parents can do right now is talk to their children.
“It’s a stressful time for adults, it’s even more stressful for kids,” Tripathy said. “The hardest part is we don’t know what’s going to happen, it’s a month away from the start of school and we still don’t know what’s going to happen.”
“Obviously kids are anxious to know, am I going to see my friends; am I going to be back in school? So talking to kids asking them what are their concerns, what are they worried about, not trying to project your own fears of the parent, but just letting them be honest and communicate with you; then talking them through those concerns with as many answers as we can give, given how fluid the situation is right now.”
As always, it’s a good idea to have children visit their doctor once a year. Tripathy said that a routine health exam for children, even during the pandemic, is still recommended.
Students entering kindergarten and grades 6, 9 and 12 are required to have vaccinations on file prior to attending school.
“The best steps you can take to stay healthy is to be healthy to begin with,” Tripathy said. “And so doing all those basic health maintenance things is still extremely important in this day and age.
“Making sure that kids are up to date on their vaccines. All those other illnesses are still out there just because COVID-19 is kind of a big concern in the news right now and in the world right now, doesn’t mean that those other infections and things aren’t out there.”
The exam will also give parents a time to talk about how to approach school for children with underlying health conditions.
“That’s something that you and the physician and or specialists need to discuss to determine if it is in fact safe,” she said.
“For otherwise healthy kids, we know that the schools are going to take all the precautions that they can in terms of as much social distancing as they can, all of the hygiene, things like that.”
Parents are advised to maintain a healthy lifestyle for their children during an otherwise uncertain time, too. Tripathy said that will help to decrease the stress and anxiety children may be feeling.
One of the first steps parents can take is to make sure that children have a daily routine.
“Obviously, right now you’re not going to put your kid to bed at 8 o’clock at night, but not having them stay up late, making sure they’re sleeping well, and making sure they’re eating a healthy diet,” she said.
Pediatricians recommend that children are only spending two hours of time on a screen a day, but Tripathy said with so few options for summer fun, children may be spending more time than that on a device.
But, she added that it is still very important that parents encourage physical activity for children throughout the day.
Part of the routine, whether a child is playing or on a device, could include having the child wear a mask to get comfortable doing so for extended periods of time.
“Make sure that the mask is comfortable,” Tripathy said. “If it’s too big, if it’s too small., if it’s too tight, kids aren’t going to wear it.”
Time may be enough for older kids to get comfortable with the mask, but Tripathy suggests that parents of younger children try to find a mask that has a fun mascot or color that the child likes.
“The more often they wear it the more comfortable they become with it, it’s going to be another piece of clothing for them.”
“For kids in school right now the current recommendation is that face masks are sufficient. Again, these recommendations may change and a lot of it just depends on where you live and what the current numbers are in your region.”
Face shields, though, are for additional protection for health care providers, teachers and children who may need additional protection.
Some school districts are offering an e-learning or virtual option for students during the 2020-21 school year. Tripathy said that the difficult part about distance learning is that children often miss out on social interaction so it will be important for parents to find ways, whether FaceTime or ZOOM for their student to interact with peers.
“If they are doing the distance learning, obviously the amount of time they spend on the screen is going to increase because they’re online for school,” she said. “And so then making sure that they’re still staying physically active, taking time away from the screen when they’re done with school to just move and interact at home and then if they want to do some fun things online, of course, that’s going to be separate from what they’re doing with school.”
Whether it’s the days leading up to school or the time spent at school, students may be feeling apprehension or stress in the upcoming months. Tripathy said that routines and structure, especially with sleep and meals, often help alleviate some of those feelings.
But if a child’s behavior changes, it may be a non-verbal cue that something more is going on.
“If they’re becoming increasingly more withdrawn, if they’re not wanting to engage in the activities that they currently can do and enjoy doing, if they’re becoming tearful or if younger kids are having a lot more of those meltdowns, those are things that we would say hey let’s kind of check in with the kids and see what’s going on.
“I think the hardest part right now is that kids can’t really socially interact with friends and family and so finding safe ways to do that as far as virtual visits or Netflix has those where you can do group viewing of movies. At least finding ways that they can interact with friends and kind of keep some of that connection going.”
As knowledge of COVID-19 is gained, Tripathy said that the medical advice being given may change. COVID-19 numbers in a community may rise and fall, changing everything that is put in place, too. She encourages parents to remain flexible.
“It’s frustrating because there isn’t anything rock solid that you can kind of count on,” she said. “As one of our providers said ‘the only thing that’s consistent right now is change,’ and that’s kind of how things have been and probably look to be in for a little while still.”
No matter what happens with a school district’s decision or whether a child is in a classroom or behind a computer, Carle’s Public Relations Manager Jamie Mullin wants people to remember to be kind to one another.
“Everyone is fighting some different battles, working from home, working with kids at home is going to affect different people differently, and so being kind and gentle to each other, understanding and doing the things that parents do so well, which is try to adapt and just do what’s right for their family,” she said. “Just remember that that’s what everyone is trying to do right now.”
Tripathy echoed that the way parents can best support their child’s mental health is to take care of their own. She suggests reaching out to an employer for assistance programs, a counselor or a friend if things seem unmanageable.
“You’re not good to anybody if you’re not taking care of yourself,” Tripathy said.
