At the moment there are many varied and unsettling discussions going around with regard to lockdowns, time in isolation, estimated time to come out of lockdowns etc. This can be a tricky and confusing time for children who quickly interpret your irritations and anxieties so easily seen on your face and heard in your words.

Given everyone’s frustration and feelings of disappointment with prolonged lockdowns and delayed start to school, it is not surprising that your child has many questions to ask and deserves some answers to reduce their fears and to give them some clarity and hope for the future.

Consider simply asking them:

Living in Covid times, your child has many questions to ask and deserves some answers to reduce their fears.

Do you have any questions about what is going on at the moment?
Are you starting to feel uncertain about what you have heard?
Are you understanding what is happening at the moment?
Would you like me to explain what the information tells us each day?
Are you feeling uncertain about school matters?
Is some news that you hear causing you to be upset?
What do you understand at the moment about the progress of the government with lockdowns etc.?
Are there any ideas you may have to feel better about this situation?
What makes you feel better when you get sad about this pandemic?

We always need to find hope. Let’s talk about the hopeful aspects of the situation such as the development of the vaccine?

Language appropriate responses are necessary given the age of the child. Keep sentences simple and clear when talking to your child. Check-in with them that they understood.

Consider the following reflections that I believe are worth thinking about under the current situation.

Your child will read the signs from your responses both physically and emotionally. They will notice what you have to say and will easily read in the nervousness you may display over matters.
Ensure newspapers that are around the house are suitable for the child to read, often they start with very disturbing headers that can be unsettling.
Keep an eye on the television news items that your child is watching. Limit these to just one piece of information. Too much overload on depressing news can be overwhelming.

Sometimes your child will not talk about what is on their mind. Staying quiet is a strategy to hide their feelings. This is why talking to them about the pandemic, including them in conversations is important for their mental health.

I appreciate that finding the positive in today’s situations is difficult but look deep and talk about the great gains in vaccine development, the acts of charity performed by so many and the great gifts of gratitude we owe the health care workers.

The more we look to finding the positives, the greater the chance the child will cope with the negatives so present around them. Given the extended nature of the lockdown, there is even more purpose in keeping the best dialogue going with your child. After all, in their own childish way they are living through this pandemic as well.