A child’s disaster story
From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I’m Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.
Protecting a child from bad things is what parents want to do. But disasters can be too big for just protection. Especially when a young child has to live through bad things, a parent’s explanation of what’s happening can help the child cope. At HHS’ Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, psychologist Dan Dodgen:
“Children really aren’t always very good at differentiating what they see on TV from what actually is happening in reality. As a parent, you want to control how much information should they get, and make sure that it’s really appropriate.”
Dodgen also says young children might not be able to explain completely in words about their worries, but changes in how they act, such as their eating or sleeping habits, can give parents clues.
Learn more at ready.gov.
HHS HealthBeat is a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I’m Ira Dreyfuss.