January 29, 2025 • 17 mins
The devastating toll of the pandemic has underscored the critical importance of connecting what science is telling us to the lived experiences of people and communities. In March of 2020, we recorded episodes exploring the impact the coronavirus pandemic could have on child development. Now, a year later, we wanted to continue these conversations and discuss what we’ve learned, what needs to change, and where we go from here.
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Episode Transcript
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(00:00):
Welcome to The Brain Architects, a podcast
(00:02):
from the Center on the Developing Child
at Harvard University.
I'm your host, Sally Fitzer.
In March of 2020, we recorded episodes
exploring the impact the coronavirus pandemic could
have on child development.
You may remember we discussed the importance of self-care
for caregivers and the importance
of physical distancing, not social distancing.
And now a year later, we wanted to continue those conversations
(00:22):
and discuss what we've learned, what needs to change,
and where we go from here.
Joining us on today's podcast, we have Dr. Nancy Rotter.
She's a pediatric psychologist and the director
of psychology in child and adolescent psychiatry,
ambulatory care division at Mass General Hospital.
Thanks so much for being with us today, Nancy.
Thanks for having me, Sally.
So the pandemic has made conversations
(00:44):
about mental health more common and perhaps even less
stigmatized.
How do we make sure that this perspective
and these conversations continue even as vaccines become
available and restrictions are lessened?
I agree that there has been some shifting over time
in terms of awareness and acknowledgement
about mental health and specifically
children's mental health.
(01:04):
I think the pandemic has really raised these conversations
to a higher level.
I think that there's certainly been
comfort in talking about heightened distress
that people have experienced due to the pandemic,
secondary to the many stressors that families have experienced.
I think about things like loss of typical child care support,
(01:26):
like daycare, in-person school, or even grandparents caring
for children, unemployment, or shifts
to having to work at home, social isolation.
And I think all of these things are widely understood
as contributing to how people are
coping and to mental health.
I think sometimes people find it easier
to describe experiences of anxiety and depression
(01:48):
in the context of stress and the stress perhaps
experienced by the pandemic.
You might not hear those words as much.
You might hear things that sound less stigmatizing,
that people might talk a lot about stress or isolation
or fatigue.
Rather than referring to specific mental health
conditions themselves, I do think
that it might be a good direction to go in to think about how
(02:11):
we can acknowledge mental health conditions as an aspect
of overall health so that we can increasingly
talk about things like depression or anxiety
or substance use disorders in the same way
that we speak about diabetes or heart disease.
Shifting towards a more specific and accurate language
for mental health conditions can really make a difference
(02:31):
because I think if we do so, we can really
add clarity for diagnoses, which then
results in leading to more effective evidence-based
treatments to treat these illnesses, again,
thinking about these like we could do other health
conditions.
I think the continued progress to kind of get
to the other part of your question
towards the destigmatization of mental health conditions
(02:53):
will really require increased and ongoing discussions
about emotional health.
And to have this happen in schools, in the media,
within families, and certainly when children
go to see their pediatrician.
I think that pediatricians more and more
are providing mental health screenings at routine exams,
(03:15):
asking developmentally-based questions to both parents
and children or adolescents to screen for things that
are concerning, anxiety, depression, suicidality,
substance use disorders.
And I kind of like the idea of thinking
of that type of screening as mental health vital signs.
And for me, that fits with the concept
(03:36):
that when you go to your pediatrician
or you go to your doctor, there's always vital signs.
They take your heart rate and your blood pressure.
And it seems to me that using that kind of language
really is helpful and is something
that's understandable to everyone
and can help to really destigmatize
the concept of mental health.
And I do hope that we continue to work
(03:56):
in the direction of integration of mental health
into the context of overall health.
Yeah, absolutely.
So many important points.
And I especially love that idea of the vital signs.
Nancy, from your perspective, has the pandemic exposed
any weaknesses in our mental health care systems,
particularly for young children?
And how should we take those into consideration
as we move forward?
I would describe the primary challenges
(04:18):
in our mental health care system for young children as twofold.
The first relates to access to mental health care.
And the second is for increased need
for prevention and early intervention services.
While thinking about the importance of mental health
care for children, I think it's really
important to be aware of some of the prevalence rates.
For example, 50% of all lifetime mental illness
(04:41):
begins by age 14, and 75% begins by age 24.
So it's very clear that making sure
that we are keeping an eye on and assessing children
and adolescents is key.
I have to say that the pandemic has impacted access
to mental health care in somewhat of a complicated way.
On the one hand, unfortunately, there's
(05:02):
been an increased need for mental health services
for everyone, and specifically for children.
And the need has really outstripped
the availability of services.
This has occurred in the setting of overall improved ability
to access care via telehealth.
Telehealth, through both the use of video and telephone visits,
has improved access in many ways.
(05:24):
Families who struggle with transportation,
that don't have the time, that have financial limitations,
it's allowed them to access behavioral health care
more readily.
However, this is further complicated,
as telehealth access has not been
equitable to Black, Latino, and non-English speaking patients
and patients living in communities hardest
hit by the pandemic, demonstrate consistently lower rates of use
(05:49):
and access to video enabled technology.
And while overall access to care has been a problem
during the pandemic and it's not easily solved,
there's been some hopeful news in Massachusetts.
Effective January 1st of this year, the state legislature
passed a bill requiring insurers pay for services conducted
by either telephone or by video technology
(06:10):
at the same rate of reimbursement
that they cover in-person visits.
And I do think that's really going
to make a difference that isn't going
to solve our immediate problem of access during the pandemic,
but hopefully knowing that that's going to be an option
down the road that will allow for additional ways
that we can help people in terms of prevention
(06:32):
and early intervention.
I think addressing the mental health needs of young children
when they present with mild symptoms like sleep or feeding
or toileting, anxiety or behavioral issues sometimes
might not get identified until they reach a level that really
requires urgent intervention.
However, preventative and early intervention
when the initial or the mild symptom becomes apparent
(06:55):
can be extremely useful.
And my thinking is that it can be improved
by having mental health professionals in the clinic
with the pediatricians so that there's
behavioral health care integration.
And that way, making services available
in the context of the yearly pediatric checkup, which
families typically come to, that there
would be screening and opportunity for intervention
(07:17):
when families are coming every year or even for other visits.
In my work at MGH in pediatric behavioral medicine,
we've been very successful at embedding psychologists
in specialty medical clinics like gastroenterology
and diabetes and food allergy, which is where I work.
Sometimes, for example, in food allergy,
I'll meet with a family where a child is very anxious
(07:38):
about having a blood test.
And so I can, at a minimum, meet with the child then.
And if they're not ready to do a blood test that day
with intervention, that now they know me
and they can come back a couple of times to see me
and I can help prepare them for that.
And so catching families where they're
going to get their medical care and being
able to help them in that context
is really important and really useful.
(08:01):
This is something that has been established
in many primary care clinics in hospitals across the country.
And the idea is to really think about a variety of services
that might best meet the needs of the family
by offering some in-clinic consultation,
some brief treatment, access to parenting groups,
and potentially digital health interventions,
(08:22):
in addition to the more traditional therapy
and medication treatments that we all know about.
I really love this idea of integration.
In particular, at the center, we talk a lot
about the need for responsive relationships.
And I hear a lot of what you're saying there
is that if you're able to build those responsive relationships
early with kids, you have a better chance at allowing them
(08:43):
to benefit from your services if they know you better.
Absolutely.
And one of the other statistics that I think is so powerful
is that when referrals are made by anyone,
by physicians or pediatricians to a mental health
professional, approximately 50% of those do not follow through.
(09:04):
And so by having someone actually live in the clinic
to meet the family, sometimes even what we call
as a warm handoff, where they just are introduced,
they get to see a face and a name,
and there's a connection, that that can really
reduce the gap we have sometimes when
there are referrals that don't make it to the referral source.
(09:26):
So in a Q&A for Mass General Hospital on preparing children
for when their parents return to work, you said,
and I'll quote you here, parents may experience their own anxiety
about having children return to daycare due to the worries
about COVID and may inadvertently send signals
to children about their own anxiety.
Could you give us some ideas on how
we can support caregivers during this adjustment period?
(09:47):
Absolutely.
In supporting parents and caregivers,
it's important to be aware that they
may have their own mental health needs
and perhaps had mental health issues prior to the pandemic.
The toll that the pandemic has had on caregivers and parents
has been tremendous.
Caregivers have been required to step into a role
that they were neither trained to do nor prepared for,
such as becoming teachers to their children,
(10:09):
providing full-time child care while at the same time
working a full-time job, or perhaps
coping with the stress of unemployment
or the loss of loved ones.
Self-care strategies can range from taking a few minutes
to read an email from a friend, a section of the paper.
Additionally, self-care can come in the form of family activities.
Creating scavenger hunts or obstacle courses for children
(10:32):
or even coming up with healthy cooking projects
can combine self-care with family time.
And I think that sometimes there are
things that we might do that are really self-care
that we may not consider self-care.
They might be small or they might be small and done
every day.
And even that sense of routine can provide a break,
(10:52):
can provide some comfort, and can provide some predictability.
I think we've all been dealing with the lack of predictability
in quite a profound way during the pandemic.
And I'm not sure that's going to change quickly
as things open up in different pieces and in different ways.
I really appreciate that lens on the caregiver.
And I wonder if you could talk a little bit more about how
(11:13):
caregivers can ease their children back
into normal life while at the same time remaining
cognizant of the stressors of this past year.
And if you could speak specifically
to infants and toddlers, I think their fears are sometimes
a little less obvious to us.
Absolutely.
Young children may exhibit distress
through behavioral changes or shifts
in their typical functioning, which
(11:34):
can include sleep, eating, toileting, anxiety, tantrums,
or increased irritability.
And it's hard to know when that happens what
that could be a function of.
It's really important that if there are changes,
abrupt changes or unusual changes in a child's functioning,
it's really important to seek out consultation
from your child's pediatrician in order
(11:56):
to rule out any underlying medical issues as a first step.
And if at that point in conversation
with the pediatrician, the belief
is that perhaps what is being experienced by the child
are indicators of stress or anxiety,
that's a time where a referral to a mental health
professional from your pediatrician
(12:17):
can be very helpful.
Many children and families are currently
adjusting to the increased amount of time
children are spending in school and or at activities
that were not happening during the pandemic restrictions.
It's typical and expected for infants and toddlers
to experience discomfort when separating from their parents
(12:37):
or caregivers.
And this may, in fact, be exacerbated
by the extended period of time they've
spent at home during the pandemic with parents
or caregivers.
So it's helpful to have a plan in mind.
For older children, maybe toddlers,
talking with them about familiar school activities
that they may remember from when they were in school
in the past, such as things that they played with
or listening to stories, can help them
(12:59):
prepare for their new schedules.
But it's also useful to think about what might be different.
Like the teacher will be wearing a mask
and there might be new hand washing rules.
So for example, they might tell their child,
we'll wake up in the morning and have breakfast together
and then you'll go off to school where
you'll play with your friends and you'll be with your teachers
and have lunch with them.
(13:19):
And then you'll return when it's about time for dinner
and we'll all have dinner together.
Additionally, for older children, sometimes
the process of rehearsing going to school
through play with dolls or figures
can help reduce the stress.
Reading books about returning to school can be useful as well.
When possible, even for very young children,
doing a short visit to the school or daycare
(13:42):
to acquaint or reacquaint the child
with the classroom and the teacher
can ease the transition as well.
Even starting back in a more gradual manner
can be helpful if that's an option.
Going for a couple of hours the first few days
and then working up to longer periods of time at the daycare
center or preschool.
Parents can also talk with their children
about what things might be the same
(14:03):
and what they might remember, their teachers, their friends,
their routines.
Parents might also find talking with their children
in a direct but simple way about the coronavirus
and how their child's school or daycare
has rules to make sure everyone is safe and healthy.
For example, they may tell their children
that their school is listening to the things
(14:23):
that the doctors and the scientists
are saying about going to school safely.
And those are the things that they're doing at school.
I know a lot of kids have been really isolated the last year.
Some maybe have only one friend or no younger
children that they see.
So could you talk a little bit more
about that social isolation or maybe potential anxiety that
might be resulting from that?
(14:43):
Yeah.
I think social anxiety is a concern
that many caregivers and parents have and some children have.
I think for children who are naturally slightly more
shy or anxious, particularly in new situations,
that re-entering social environments
can be quite challenging.
I would think a lot with the family
(15:05):
about ideas such as previewing what to expect.
Sometimes for young children, looking
at pictures of someone they maybe haven't seen in a while,
thinking about things they did before with that child that
might have been fun or interesting when
we're thinking of young children.
(15:26):
Another thing that I talk a lot about with families
when children have some anxiety about social situations
is the structured play date.
I think the idea of having a very specific plan in mind
for an activity that's really time-based.
So it's not a long and structured period of time,
but it might be that a child comes over
for a lawn bowling and cookies and lemonade,
(15:48):
and then that's the end of that particular play date.
Or a specific arts or crafts activity
or something along those lines.
But that everyone knows what the expectation is,
that there's something else to focus on.
And sometimes that really helps to build things.
And often what we'll find is in those situations
(16:09):
that once children are comfortable with each other
or reconnect, in the case of they haven't seen each other
in a while, that they can take it from there.
But some children need more structured play dates
to help build in that comfort in a social setting.
There's many people who I think will be comforted
by your examples because you gave really clear ideas.
(16:31):
I'm your host, Sally Fitzgerald.
The Brain Architects is a product
of the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University.
You can find us at developingchild.harvard.edu.
We're also on Twitter at Harvard Center,
Facebook at Center Developing Child,
Instagram at Developing Child Harvard,
and LinkedIn, Center on the Developing Child
at Harvard University.
Brandi Thomas is our producer.
(16:52):
Dominic Mathurin is our audio editor.
Our music is Brain Power by Mila from freemusicarchive.org.
This podcast was recorded at my dining room table.
Welcome to The Brain Architects, a podcast
(00:02):
from the Center on the Developing Child
at Harvard University.
I'm your host, Sally Fitzer.
In March of 2020, we recorded episodes
exploring the impact the coronavirus pandemic could
have on child development.
You may remember we discussed the importance of self-care
for caregivers and the importance
of physical distancing, not social distancing.
And now a year later, we wanted to continue those conversations
(00:22):
and discuss what we've learned, what needs to change,
and where we go from here.
Joining us on today's podcast, we have Dr. Nancy Rotter.
She's a pediatric psychologist and the director
of psychology in child and adolescent psychiatry,
ambulatory care division at Mass General Hospital.
Thanks so much for being with us today, Nancy.
Thanks for having me, Sally.
So the pandemic has made conversations
(00:44):
about mental health more common and perhaps even less
stigmatized.
How do we make sure that this perspective
and these conversations continue even as vaccines become
available and restrictions are lessened?
I agree that there has been some shifting over time
in terms of awareness and acknowledgement
about mental health and specifically
children's mental health.
(01:04):
I think the pandemic has really raised these conversations
to a higher level.
I think that there's certainly been
comfort in talking about heightened distress
that people have experienced due to the pandemic,
secondary to the many stressors that families have experienced.
I think about things like loss of typical child care support,
(01:26):
like daycare, in-person school, or even grandparents caring
for children, unemployment, or shifts
to having to work at home, social isolation.
And I think all of these things are widely understood
as contributing to how people are
coping and to mental health.
I think sometimes people find it easier
to describe experiences of anxiety and depression
(01:48):
in the context of stress and the stress perhaps
experienced by the pandemic.
You might not hear those words as much.
You might hear things that sound less stigmatizing,
that people might talk a lot about stress or isolation
or fatigue.
Rather than referring to specific mental health
conditions themselves, I do think
that it might be a good direction to go in to think about how
(02:11):
we can acknowledge mental health conditions as an aspect
of overall health so that we can increasingly
talk about things like depression or anxiety
or substance use disorders in the same way
that we speak about diabetes or heart disease.
Shifting towards a more specific and accurate language
for mental health conditions can really make a difference
(02:31):
because I think if we do so, we can really
add clarity for diagnoses, which then
results in leading to more effective evidence-based
treatments to treat these illnesses, again,
thinking about these like we could do other health
conditions.
I think the continued progress to kind of get
to the other part of your question
towards the destigmatization of mental health conditions
(02:53):
will really require increased and ongoing discussions
about emotional health.
And to have this happen in schools, in the media,
within families, and certainly when children
go to see their pediatrician.
I think that pediatricians more and more
are providing mental health screenings at routine exams,
(03:15):
asking developmentally-based questions to both parents
and children or adolescents to screen for things that
are concerning, anxiety, depression, suicidality,
substance use disorders.
And I kind of like the idea of thinking
of that type of screening as mental health vital signs.
And for me, that fits with the concept
(03:36):
that when you go to your pediatrician
or you go to your doctor, there's always vital signs.
They take your heart rate and your blood pressure.
And it seems to me that using that kind of language
really is helpful and is something
that's understandable to everyone
and can help to really destigmatize
the concept of mental health.
And I do hope that we continue to work
(03:56):
in the direction of integration of mental health
into the context of overall health.
Yeah, absolutely.
So many important points.
And I especially love that idea of the vital signs.
Nancy, from your perspective, has the pandemic exposed
any weaknesses in our mental health care systems,
particularly for young children?
And how should we take those into consideration
as we move forward?
I would describe the primary challenges
(04:18):
in our mental health care system for young children as twofold.
The first relates to access to mental health care.
And the second is for increased need
for prevention and early intervention services.
While thinking about the importance of mental health
care for children, I think it's really
important to be aware of some of the prevalence rates.
For example, 50% of all lifetime mental illness
(04:41):
begins by age 14, and 75% begins by age 24.
So it's very clear that making sure
that we are keeping an eye on and assessing children
and adolescents is key.
I have to say that the pandemic has impacted access
to mental health care in somewhat of a complicated way.
On the one hand, unfortunately, there's
(05:02):
been an increased need for mental health services
for everyone, and specifically for children.
And the need has really outstripped
the availability of services.
This has occurred in the setting of overall improved ability
to access care via telehealth.
Telehealth, through both the use of video and telephone visits,
has improved access in many ways.
(05:24):
Families who struggle with transportation,
that don't have the time, that have financial limitations,
it's allowed them to access behavioral health care
more readily.
However, this is further complicated,
as telehealth access has not been
equitable to Black, Latino, and non-English speaking patients
and patients living in communities hardest
hit by the pandemic, demonstrate consistently lower rates of use
(05:49):
and access to video enabled technology.
And while overall access to care has been a problem
during the pandemic and it's not easily solved,
there's been some hopeful news in Massachusetts.
Effective January 1st of this year, the state legislature
passed a bill requiring insurers pay for services conducted
by either telephone or by video technology
(06:10):
at the same rate of reimbursement
that they cover in-person visits.
And I do think that's really going
to make a difference that isn't going
to solve our immediate problem of access during the pandemic,
but hopefully knowing that that's going to be an option
down the road that will allow for additional ways
that we can help people in terms of prevention
(06:32):
and early intervention.
I think addressing the mental health needs of young children
when they present with mild symptoms like sleep or feeding
or toileting, anxiety or behavioral issues sometimes
might not get identified until they reach a level that really
requires urgent intervention.
However, preventative and early intervention
when the initial or the mild symptom becomes apparent
(06:55):
can be extremely useful.
And my thinking is that it can be improved
by having mental health professionals in the clinic
with the pediatricians so that there's
behavioral health care integration.
And that way, making services available
in the context of the yearly pediatric checkup, which
families typically come to, that there
would be screening and opportunity for intervention
(07:17):
when families are coming every year or even for other visits.
In my work at MGH in pediatric behavioral medicine,
we've been very successful at embedding psychologists
in specialty medical clinics like gastroenterology
and diabetes and food allergy, which is where I work.
Sometimes, for example, in food allergy,
I'll meet with a family where a child is very anxious
(07:38):
about having a blood test.
And so I can, at a minimum, meet with the child then.
And if they're not ready to do a blood test that day
with intervention, that now they know me
and they can come back a couple of times to see me
and I can help prepare them for that.
And so catching families where they're
going to get their medical care and being
able to help them in that context
is really important and really useful.
(08:01):
This is something that has been established
in many primary care clinics in hospitals across the country.
And the idea is to really think about a variety of services
that might best meet the needs of the family
by offering some in-clinic consultation,
some brief treatment, access to parenting groups,
and potentially digital health interventions,
(08:22):
in addition to the more traditional therapy
and medication treatments that we all know about.
I really love this idea of integration.
In particular, at the center, we talk a lot
about the need for responsive relationships.
And I hear a lot of what you're saying there
is that if you're able to build those responsive relationships
early with kids, you have a better chance at allowing them
(08:43):
to benefit from your services if they know you better.
Absolutely.
And one of the other statistics that I think is so powerful
is that when referrals are made by anyone,
by physicians or pediatricians to a mental health
professional, approximately 50% of those do not follow through.
(09:04):
And so by having someone actually live in the clinic
to meet the family, sometimes even what we call
as a warm handoff, where they just are introduced,
they get to see a face and a name,
and there's a connection, that that can really
reduce the gap we have sometimes when
there are referrals that don't make it to the referral source.
(09:26):
So in a Q&A for Mass General Hospital on preparing children
for when their parents return to work, you said,
and I'll quote you here, parents may experience their own anxiety
about having children return to daycare due to the worries
about COVID and may inadvertently send signals
to children about their own anxiety.
Could you give us some ideas on how
we can support caregivers during this adjustment period?
(09:47):
Absolutely.
In supporting parents and caregivers,
it's important to be aware that they
may have their own mental health needs
and perhaps had mental health issues prior to the pandemic.
The toll that the pandemic has had on caregivers and parents
has been tremendous.
Caregivers have been required to step into a role
that they were neither trained to do nor prepared for,
such as becoming teachers to their children,
(10:09):
providing full-time child care while at the same time
working a full-time job, or perhaps
coping with the stress of unemployment
or the loss of loved ones.
Self-care strategies can range from taking a few minutes
to read an email from a friend, a section of the paper.
Additionally, self-care can come in the form of family activities.
Creating scavenger hunts or obstacle courses for children
(10:32):
or even coming up with healthy cooking projects
can combine self-care with family time.
And I think that sometimes there are
things that we might do that are really self-care
that we may not consider self-care.
They might be small or they might be small and done
every day.
And even that sense of routine can provide a break,
(10:52):
can provide some comfort, and can provide some predictability.
I think we've all been dealing with the lack of predictability
in quite a profound way during the pandemic.
And I'm not sure that's going to change quickly
as things open up in different pieces and in different ways.
I really appreciate that lens on the caregiver.
And I wonder if you could talk a little bit more about how
(11:13):
caregivers can ease their children back
into normal life while at the same time remaining
cognizant of the stressors of this past year.
And if you could speak specifically
to infants and toddlers, I think their fears are sometimes
a little less obvious to us.
Absolutely.
Young children may exhibit distress
through behavioral changes or shifts
in their typical functioning, which
(11:34):
can include sleep, eating, toileting, anxiety, tantrums,
or increased irritability.
And it's hard to know when that happens what
that could be a function of.
It's really important that if there are changes,
abrupt changes or unusual changes in a child's functioning,
it's really important to seek out consultation
from your child's pediatrician in order
(11:56):
to rule out any underlying medical issues as a first step.
And if at that point in conversation
with the pediatrician, the belief
is that perhaps what is being experienced by the child
are indicators of stress or anxiety,
that's a time where a referral to a mental health
professional from your pediatrician
(12:17):
can be very helpful.
Many children and families are currently
adjusting to the increased amount of time
children are spending in school and or at activities
that were not happening during the pandemic restrictions.
It's typical and expected for infants and toddlers
to experience discomfort when separating from their parents
(12:37):
or caregivers.
And this may, in fact, be exacerbated
by the extended period of time they've
spent at home during the pandemic with parents
or caregivers.
So it's helpful to have a plan in mind.
For older children, maybe toddlers,
talking with them about familiar school activities
that they may remember from when they were in school
in the past, such as things that they played with
or listening to stories, can help them
(12:59):
prepare for their new schedules.
But it's also useful to think about what might be different.
Like the teacher will be wearing a mask
and there might be new hand washing rules.
So for example, they might tell their child,
we'll wake up in the morning and have breakfast together
and then you'll go off to school where
you'll play with your friends and you'll be with your teachers
and have lunch with them.
(13:19):
And then you'll return when it's about time for dinner
and we'll all have dinner together.
Additionally, for older children, sometimes
the process of rehearsing going to school
through play with dolls or figures
can help reduce the stress.
Reading books about returning to school can be useful as well.
When possible, even for very young children,
doing a short visit to the school or daycare
(13:42):
to acquaint or reacquaint the child
with the classroom and the teacher
can ease the transition as well.
Even starting back in a more gradual manner
can be helpful if that's an option.
Going for a couple of hours the first few days
and then working up to longer periods of time at the daycare
center or preschool.
Parents can also talk with their children
about what things might be the same
(14:03):
and what they might remember, their teachers, their friends,
their routines.
Parents might also find talking with their children
in a direct but simple way about the coronavirus
and how their child's school or daycare
has rules to make sure everyone is safe and healthy.
For example, they may tell their children
that their school is listening to the things
(14:23):
that the doctors and the scientists
are saying about going to school safely.
And those are the things that they're doing at school.
I know a lot of kids have been really isolated the last year.
Some maybe have only one friend or no younger
children that they see.
So could you talk a little bit more
about that social isolation or maybe potential anxiety that
might be resulting from that?
(14:43):
Yeah.
I think social anxiety is a concern
that many caregivers and parents have and some children have.
I think for children who are naturally slightly more
shy or anxious, particularly in new situations,
that re-entering social environments
can be quite challenging.
I would think a lot with the family
(15:05):
about ideas such as previewing what to expect.
Sometimes for young children, looking
at pictures of someone they maybe haven't seen in a while,
thinking about things they did before with that child that
might have been fun or interesting when
we're thinking of young children.
(15:26):
Another thing that I talk a lot about with families
when children have some anxiety about social situations
is the structured play date.
I think the idea of having a very specific plan in mind
for an activity that's really time-based.
So it's not a long and structured period of time,
but it might be that a child comes over
for a lawn bowling and cookies and lemonade,
(15:48):
and then that's the end of that particular play date.
Or a specific arts or crafts activity
or something along those lines.
But that everyone knows what the expectation is,
that there's something else to focus on.
And sometimes that really helps to build things.
And often what we'll find is in those situations
(16:09):
that once children are comfortable with each other
or reconnect, in the case of they haven't seen each other
in a while, that they can take it from there.
But some children need more structured play dates
to help build in that comfort in a social setting.
There's many people who I think will be comforted
by your examples because you gave really clear ideas.
(16:31):
I'm your host, Sally Fitzgerald.
The Brain Architects is a product
of the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University.
You can find us at developingchild.harvard.edu.
We're also on Twitter at Harvard Center,
Facebook at Center Developing Child,
Instagram at Developing Child Harvard,
and LinkedIn, Center on the Developing Child
at Harvard University.
Brandi Thomas is our producer.
(16:52):
Dominic Mathurin is our audio editor.
Our music is Brain Power by Mila from freemusicarchive.org.
This podcast was recorded at my dining room table.
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