🤝 Psychologist Jo Lamble On Talking To Your Children About The Bondi Junction Attacks

The shopping centre is meant to be a safe place, a place that our children meet their friends at, a place we might visit weekly. But after the tragic events that occurred at Bondi Junction Shopping Mall and all the media coverage on our screens and social media, how should we discuss it with our kids?

Clinical Psychologist Jo Lamble joins us now to give us some guidance.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
And Amanda jam Nation.

Speaker 2 (00:03):
We've been talking this morning about how the mall is
meant to be a safe space. You meet up with
your friends, get your baby and yourself out of the house.
Maybe it's a weekly visit to do some shopping and
just to veg out. It is our town square. But
after the tragic events that occurred at Bondi Junction and
the media coverage on our screens in our social media,
how do we navigate this so called safe space now

(00:25):
for our children psychologists? Clinical psychologist Joe Lamble is going
to give us some guidance. Good morning, Joe, Good morning guys.
So so sad, it is so so sad. A lot
of people have been talking about the man who escorted
his children from the mall with blindfolds over their eyes. Ironically,
that footage has now been seen by everybody. But what

(00:46):
foresight to try and protect his children from from all
the images that other kids are now being subjected to.

Speaker 1 (00:52):
Yes, exactly, and then that man sounds like was in
a shop and being protected by staff who were just
amazing right across the center, and then yes, had the
sight to try and shield their eyes as they were
all escorted out. Yeah, it's incredible what parents will do.

Speaker 2 (01:10):
So what do we do for the children who well,
obviously the children who were there, that's another that's a
very traumatic and different story. But what about for everyone
else's kids who are watching this play out on television
and on their social media screens.

Speaker 1 (01:25):
Yeah, that's the keys and it's so different these days
because they are seeing so much more than we would
have in when we were that age. I think one
of the frightening things I heard was there were teens
who were hearing and hearing about this and seeing images
before it had got to the media because kids who
were there were busy posting things and so kids at

(01:46):
homes all over Australia were seeing what was playing out.
So it's really important that all parents check in with
their kids, what have you seen? What have you heard?
And it may be much more than you realize, and
they may not be telling you because they may fear
that they're going to get in trouble or that you're
going to say that's it, get off your phones. But

(02:07):
we need to know what they have seen, not then
reassure them they're not in trouble, just so we can
support them.

Speaker 2 (02:13):
And how do we support them?

Speaker 1 (02:16):
Well, the main thing is, you know, all parents know
their kids, you know, so some kids really want to
talk about it, and they will talk and talk and talk,
and we will listen and listen and listen. Other kids,
you know, your child is not one to open up,
So they're the ones we have to check in on.
Don't just wait for them to come to you. Check
in on the normal bill when there's little eye contact

(02:36):
in the car, beside them on the couch, and just
say how you're traveling, you know, what have you seen,
how you're feeling. So just don't feel like you'll bring
it up and making a big deal out of it
if you check in on them, because, as I said,
those kids who keep it all inside, they're the ones
we really need to be mindful of.

Speaker 3 (02:54):
Well, we had that call this morning from the dad
and his little daughter said, I don't want to go
to the shop. He said, I don't want to get stabbed.
You what would you do when you get asked that question?

Speaker 1 (03:05):
Yeah, that's going to be quite common. We're going to
look for any of these changes changes and sleep patterns
in nightmare, juice, appetite, and definitely this avoidance behavior. Avoidance
behavior is very common in traumatic events, because that's it's natural,
isn't it. We think, wow, there's danger there, so we
want to reassure them by saying, I can understand that.
You don't want to say, don'd be silly, don't be silly.

(03:26):
Of course you'll be fine. You say, no, that's totally
normal that you want to avoid the shopping centdron when
it's fine to lay low for now. And then you're
just very gently, as we do in any anxiety reducing event,
is we just gradually take little steps just to the
local shops with them, you know, and you reassure them
and we say as often as we can, you are safe,

(03:47):
you are safe, you are safe. And so it will
take some time and some kids, again according to their personality,
according to their situations, some will take a bit longer
than others. Some might take months and months.

Speaker 3 (03:59):
Well, Joe, always a treat to have you on, and
it'd be good to have you on under good circumstances.
Maybe you should book Joe in for a good circumstances
chat great idea. It's a good idea, Joe. If you
want to get in contact with Joe. By the way,
Joe Lamble dot com, she's got our own website now, Joe,
Thank

Speaker 1 (04:16):
You, Thanks guys,