Photo By Jenn DeHaan | The author’s 11-year-old son takes a break from the tedious tasks virtual schooling...... read more read more
FORT KNOX, Ky. -- Normalcy. It’s a word that seems to have almost completely lost its dictionary meaning over the past year because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Getting back to it seems to weigh heavily on the minds of many parents.
In this world of a constantly changing state of affairs, struggling to figure out how to instill some form of normalcy for our children becomes a daily battle for most families. As a mother of two, I have toiled over ways to give my kids a sense of normality while also ensuring that fear and desolation aren’t taking hold of them.
“Younger kids will cue off the emotions of their parents,” said Dr. Robert Bickett, psychologist at Fort Knox’s Child Adult Family Behavioral Health Services, who recently reminded me how important it is to keep a brave face in front of my little ones. “If parents are in a state of crisis then kids are going to sense that, and their sense of stability, their sense of safety, will be affected.”
Flashback to March 2020 when the shutdown began —
The sudden thrust into perpetual togetherness turned many parents into “stimulation seekers” as we hunted for various ways to not just entertain, but also educate our youngsters. It was almost easy at first, with vast amounts of ideas being shared by professionals and among fellow parents.
Combining those suggestions with insight into our own kids’ personalities and interests, my husband and I strived to make our family time together engaging — from outdoor endeavors like hiking and fishing to indoor critical thinking activities that included puzzles, learning new card and dice games, cooking recipes, and music practice.
But as every parent knows, there’s only so much time a child can spend on those things before they become disinterested and downright bored.
This is where the greatest hurdle I’ve faced as a mother has repeatedly tripped me up: screen time. Between virtual schooling, telework, and the ease of utilizing technology as a reliable way to endlessly occupy young minds, I’ve definitely been guilty of allowing them far too much time staring at a screen.
“There’s a very clear ratio: the more screen time the more depressed they become, and the higher their anxiety level becomes,” said Bickett.
So, what’s the main thing we as parents can do to alleviate those difficulties and give our children the best sense of normalcy possible?
“Students struggle with lack of routine so consistency and stability is really important,” said Amy English, a Meade County School District guidance counselor.
She offered some key advice for all parents doing all they can to help young ones through this difficult time: “Because they’re not getting the social interaction, it’s up to parents to provide all the interaction they can.”
All throughout the pandemic we’ve done all we could to achieve just that. Simple things have become our goals: like asking them how they’re feeling and then listening intently when they talk, sharing our own thoughts so they see we experience the same feelings, and having actual sit-down meals together any time we’re all at home.
However, after nearly a year of desperately searching for new methods of filling the void school would normally supply, I still find myself unsure of my efforts. Bickett gave a great suggestion when looking for socialization opportunities the next time we take our kids on a walk or hike.
“If I’m standing six feet from you and you want to say hi to the guy who has a dog coming by, you can do that,” proposed Bickett. “At least they’re interacting with people and can see, ‘Oh that person was nice, they’re not mean, they talked to me, and they have a really cool dog — so maybe the world isn’t bad.’”
And isn’t that all we want for our children: to show them there’s still wonderful things about our world, and incredible experiences to be had? We simply need to express how much we care for them, have concern for their emotions, and that we love spending time with them.
After all, normalcy is just a word with different meaning for everyone.
| Date Taken: | 02.12.2021 |
| Date Posted: | 02.12.2021 13:42 |
| Story ID: | 388993 |
| Location: | FORT KNOX, KENTUCKY, US |
| Web Views: | 44 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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