Across the US, there have been several weather emergencies in recent months. Many parents have been confronted with the challenge of keeping children calm while trying to protect them from harm.
Nicholas Garlow from HHS HealthBeat, a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, shared the following message on July 29, 2013 on just this subject.
Keeping little ones calm during emergencies can be difficult. Make sure you explain your family’s emergency plan to them well before an emergency.
Different places like day care centers and schools have different plans. Understand those plans and explain them in kid-language before a disaster to reduce their anxiety if disaster strikes.
Psychologist Dr. Dan Dodgen is with HHS’s Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response. He shares, “Particularly for parents, it is important to remember to monitor media to make sure that children aren’t getting exposed to too much information over the air. Young children may interpret a replay as a separate event.
Parents – please remember that children often follow your lead. If you keep calm during emergencies, there’s a greater chance they will too.”
To learn more about public health emergency readiness, go to phe.gov.
