Managing Anxiety There’s no doubt that we are facing a challenging time, it is normal to feel tense or nervous. You are not alone. We are all in this together. We’ve brought together some information, which hopefully will help us all to keep our mental well being balanced and healthy through this time. Of course, you don’t have to read all of the below links, but if anything jumps out to you, have a look, it might give a different perspective, or share an idea which you haven’t heard before. “The way we combat anxiety is with confidence and we gain confidence through knowledge.” Managing anxiety about the virus as adults https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/coronavirus-and-your-wellbeing/#collapse1644b
*** Remember your mixture of emotions? Children feel those too, combined with frustration of the daily security of their normal routine being turned upside down. There’s things we can do to help. Restore the calm in your home by checking out these meditation links for children.(We've got a whole blog on activities coming soon too!)
Mindful and relaxation exercises that parents can do with younger children to help with managing anxiety https://www.youtube.com/user/CosmicKidsYoga
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We understand that it can be difficult to explain the current situation to children, so here’s some helpful links.
Information on coronavirus for children The BBC Newsround site https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/51204456 has a comprehensive section on coronavirus with text and video guidance focusing on tips if a child is worried, how to wash your hands, and what self-isolation means. Covibook – an interactive resource designed to support and reassure children aged 7 and under to help children explain and draw the emotions that they might be experiencing during the pandemic: https://www.mindheart.co/descargables Available in 18 different languages Hello I’m a virus https://660919d3-b85b-43c3-a3ad-3de6a9d37099.filesusr.com/ugd/64c685_319c5acf38d34604b537ac9fae37fc80.pdf Free downloadable resources, story books about the coronavirus https://www.elsa-support.co.uk/category/free-resources/coronavirus-support/
Carol Gray has produced a social story https://carolgraysocialstories.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Pandemics-and-the-Coronavirus.pdf about coronavirus and pandemics. The social story uses large print pictures and provides contextual information about pandemics and viruses in general. Information for parents of how to support children though COVID19 https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/helping-children-cope-with-stress-print.pdf?sfvrsn=f3a063ff_2
https://childmind.org/article/talking-to-kids-about-the-coronavirus/ https://www.bps.org.uk/news-and-policy/talking-children-about-coronavirus http://www.incredibleyears.com/parents-teachers/articles-for-parents/
Place2Be – Guide to helping parents answer questions from their children and to support family wellbeing: https://www.place2be.org.uk/about-us/news-and-blogs/2020/march/coronavirus-information-for-children/
Young Minds - Talking to your child about Coronavirus and 10 tips from their Parents Helpline to support family wellbeing: https://youngminds.org.uk/blog/talking-to-your-child-about-coronavirus/
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If you’re still reading, well done for making it this far. You are empowering yourself with information that will help you have a brighter tomorrow. You can go and get a cup of tea and a biscuit now!
Jokes aside, we hope you are staying safe, keeping positive and having fun!
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