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The emotional effects on children of a large-scale catastrophe or disaster, such as the recent earthquake in Haiti, can be tremendous. Even though this tragedy was not on our home turf, our children can feel especially helpless when they see images of homeless and injured Haitian children and orphans on the news. Kids also absorb worry and sadness from their parents, or from classmates who have family ties in Haiti. Here are some ideas about how to help kids comprehend and deal with such a catastrophe. Read More
helping in the face of disaster
Great tips here—also think we parents can suffer vicarious traumatization from all the horrible images and stories (from Haiti and in the stream of disturbing stories we hear personally and in the media). Just a good wish out to stressed parents to take good care of themselves by checking in with themselves and finding ways to express their feelings to trusted others.
Thanks for these loving suggestions (and in your other posts as well).
Namaste
Parents need support too!
Thank you very much for writing and for your insight. Yes, parents need to take care of themselves. If possible, take a media break - watching is traumatizing. We want to stay informed, but not to the extent that we hurt ourselves. And now with a big 6.1 aftershock that increases everyone's concern for Haiti. Your children will pick up on your feelings, so please be kind to yourselves.
Coping With Disaster live interview
With the recent catastrophe in Japan, I've been interviewed on What Really Matters and it's now live at http://vic kyandjen.c om/podcast _214.html. It's 30 minutes packed full of info about helping kids during disasters and a great complement to my article here. Please tune in and let us know your thoughts.
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