Open hearts. Honest conversations.

Parenting During a Pandemic

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Open hearts. Honest conversations.

Youth Mental Health
Valerie is joined by Taylor and Venus, both members of this year’s Youth Leadership Advisory Board (YouthLAB). Each year Family Services of the North Shore invites 12 youth from across the community to learn about mental health issues. The YouthLAB takes all that learning and creates a public awareness project to share with peers.

This episode is for youth and adults alike. If you’re a young person, you’ll get some good tips on managing stress and talking to the adults in your life. If you’re an adult, Taylor and Venus provide insights on what it’s like to be a teenager these days, as well as ways we can interact in a meaningful way with the young people in our lives.

In this wide ranging conversation, we talk about such things as social media, post-secondary education plans, and tools and ideas for taking care of your mental health. We also talk about the realities of their lives, and the complexities of being a teen in our world today.

Show Notes:
  • There is no magic pandemic parenting that needs to happen.
  • It does not make us better parents if we feel bad about ourselves as parents and compare ourselves to others, thinking they are better than us.
  • When we feel shame about ourselves as parents we are preoccupied with ourselves and we are not connecting with our child. We can miss out on our own kids’ unique needs when we are trying to match what others are doing.
  • If we do something that’s not that great as a parent, we can stay connected with ourselves, stay connected with our child, and we can repair what we’ve said or done.
  • If we are starting to see a pattern coming out with our kids and you know in your heart that this is not the kind of parent you want to be, that’s the time to ask for some help.
  • Many parents are using distractions, like eating, alcohol, screen-time to help deal with the anxiety brought on by the pandemic.  If you’re doing that a lot it is likely not a great coping strategy. It is avoidance.
  • The basics for healthy coping are to talk with someone else about your feelings, get some physical exercise, remove yourself from the place in which the unhealthy coping is happening.  
  • Kids notice when parents are stressed and having a hard time.
  • You can be honest with your kids about the situation and also the ways in which you are solving it.  This sends the message life can be hard and we can get through hard things together.
  • The silver lining of the pandemic is that kids are learning that they can get through difficult experiences and still be ok.  So, the next time they encounter a difficulty they can look back and say “I survived that hard time, and I can do it again.”
    • Resources:
    • To access counselling for children, youth, and adults, email our intake counsellor [email protected].
    • Thrive Family Programs for parents of kids aged 0-6 are free of charge.  Virtual and outdoor options available.  To learn more, click here.
    • If you are interested in getting involved as a volunteer, click here to learn more.
    • If enjoyed the podcast and would like to support our work, click here to learn about becoming a donor.
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      Open hearts. Honest conversations.By Family Services of the North Shore