We are thinking about and praying for you all the time. We know that your lives are most likely upside down and that you are having to create a new normal for you and for your family during this pandemic. That is not easy for most people. It is especially not easy for those of us whose children are confused, stressed, and upset by their own personal current situation and have a hard time coping because of their unique set of challenges. We thought these ideas may be helpful to you:
Tips during pandemic life from other special needs families.
- If your child is calmed and kept calm with a routine, do what you can to be safe and keep as much of the routine as you can.
- If you cannot keep your regular routine or any part of it, begin now to introduce a new routine one step at a time. You can use digital recordings or visual charts to keep reminding them of how things will change. Sometimes it takes our loved ones a little longer to embrace new ideas.
- If your child is more flexible and you can introduce a more casual schedule, go with the flow a little more. Let your child sleep in as long as they want to. Have a more flexible meal/snack schedule. Allow more movies, outside play, games, read aloud time, etc.
- Validate your child’s feelings. You may even want to prepare a script to record digitally that you can play often to help your child know that these changes are okay, that he or she is okay. If you would like to brainstorm with us about a script for your family, feel free to email us or comment on our Facebook page. We would love to support you this way.
- Remember for yourself that it is okay to not be okay with all this. It is a difficult time. Give yourself grace as you work to help your child.
- Play classical music in the background. This can have a calming effect on both us and our children.
- Be sure to stay connected with other parents who are striving to navigate this pandemic the best they can.
- As much as is possible, do some things you love and that fill you.
We would love to brainstorm how these ideas may work for you, personally. Feel free to get in touch.
Love,
Tom and Julie Meekins
We invite you to connect with Tom, Julie, and Amy through:
Email: champions4parents@gmail.com
Phone: 410-746-9010
Facebook: www.facebook.com/Champions4Parents
Don’t forget our website: www.champions4parents.com
