Being there for your kids - Pandemic? Don't Be Discouraged

Episode Date: April 1, 2020

With the current stress of pandemic on all of our lives, and possibility for discouragement as our routines are disrupted, I'm breaking into my top 10 parenting tips to help out. Our new normal, shelter-in-place, can lead to parents and children going bonkers! Or we can adapt, do our part to stop the spread of this killer virus, and make the most out of difficult times. In this podcast, I give you 4 suggestions for keeping stress and discouragement at bay, while also finding quality time with your family. What a great opportunity for emotional intimacy and teachable moments!

Hi, I'm Dr. John Robinson, and this is Teachable Moments. I want to talk about keeping discouragement at bay. Presently, we are all various degrees of stressed and discouraged. Sheltering in place is the part we can do to help eradicate the coronavirus. While my thoughts address this current stress as parents, it's important for us to keep discouragement at bay, both for us and for our children, regardless of the current level of stress. "'Mom!' Mandy hollered from her bedroom. "'Mom was in the kitchen on her desktop computer. "'Can you help me? "'How do I get this online stuff for my class? "'What's a teacher's portal?

"'Man, when will this shelter-in-place end?' "'Mom closed out her computer "'and hurried to her 12-year-old daughter's bedroom. "'Mandy was fidgety. "'Settle down, sweetheart, she soothed. "'Let's see if we can figure this out together. "'Has this scene played out in your house? Not yet? Well, it will. The current circumstances with the pandemic are fraying everyone's nerves.

We all have to adapt to the current reality, but not a new normal. So, here are some suggestions I have to ease, stress, and frustration. First, children tend to take things personally. Guess what? The shelter in place and social distancing things are not about you. We hear repeatedly that we are all in this together. Use your active listening to hear your child's feelings and help lower her emotional fever. If need be, help her take deep cleansing breaths to calm down. Give her time and opportunity to check in by cell, text, or Skype, not in person, with her close friends. They will share their misery. Second, try to maintain your usual routine and schedule and create one for your now-at-home children. This means getting up and going to bed at roughly the same time as usual, alternating work or school with breaks throughout the day,

making plans for coming days that give us all something to look forward to. The rule of thumb about homeschooling is that kids learning at home can do the schoolwork of a normal six-hour school day in about four hours. So create about four hours of hands-on learning each day for your child. For older kids, supervise their planning and time usage. Check in with them hourly during their school day to make sure they are on task. For elementary and younger kids, mold your day to theirs. Find unique and creative ways to learn and have fun. Did you know that a walk in the local park, of course with social distancing, counts as a P.E. class?

Cooking together can be a math class with all the measuring. Reading together can morph into an English lesson as well. Third, keep a family calendar so that you all can look ahead and plan accordingly. When you are frustrated and stressed, such a normal mundane activity injects hope. and anticipation into the mix. Finally, alternate fun stuff with work and school stuff. Throw a fun, stress-reducing activity into the day after each 30 to 50 minutes of work or school. One of the blessings here is that most families will find themselves with more time together.

Make use of it. Have a family meeting to plan out the number and kinds of fun stuff you all can do together. These Bible verses come to mind to lean on as we all get through these. these times together. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. What Satan intends for evil, God can turn to good. Those things that are impossible to man are possible to God. I have come that you might have life and have it more abundantly. Come to me all who are burdened and heavy laden, and I will give you rest. With these suggestions and Bible verses, you can keep discouragement at bay during these difficult times.

Who knows, you might also find teachable moments. I'm Dr. Jonathan C. Robinson, licensed clinical psychologist and Christian author of Teachable Moments, Building Blocks of Christian Parenting, and this has been Teachable Moments. Teachable Moments, Building Blocks of Christian Parenting, is available online at AmazonBooks.com and in local and national bookstores. More on Dr. Robinson at TMC-P-I-N-C.com.