The situation of confinement in students and the life changes caused by the COVID-19 crisis can produce psychological sequelae in children and a great emotional impact in the medium and long term.
Helping our little ones to overcome this stage should be our goal, and as parents, informing ourselves about it is the best way to do it. At Logos International School our main mission is to ensure the education and well-being of our students at home. That is why we want to keep our entire community of parents informed about the consequences that confinement can have on our students.
What should we prevent after student confinement?
After having gone through this situation of uncertainty and concern with the COVID-19 pandemic, it is normal that your children may present some symptoms derived from the confinement.
As parents, it is important to be alert to these symptoms and know how to solve them. Here are some traits that you should observe and detect in your children in the post-confinement stage.
Excessive fear
It is normal that after having lived through a global pandemic, children and adolescents want to feel much more concerned about their health and that of their loved ones. However, suffering excessively from the fear of contagion or disease can have serious consequences in their environment.
Mood swings, irritability and difficult moods
In trying to come to terms with the situation and the previous experience, children are likely to be more exposed and also much more sensitive. As a result, they may be sadder or cry more easily. Tantrums, anger and fights between siblings may also become more common.
Signs of anxiety
If your children are experiencing sleep disturbances, nightmares, frustration and constant post-confinement boredom, it could be anxiety. After months of not being able to see their friends, jump, run, exercise and expand their energy, it is likely that some of these anxiety symptoms are showing up in their day-to-day life.
Apathy and rejection of social interaction
Another warning that we cannot overlook is the fear or reluctance of children to go out of the house. The lack of personal contact with other children or classmates can lead to a lack of social interest in the youngest children, especially in the shyest ones. As a student, the child can create rejection or reluctance to online school activities.
Abuse of technology
So much time in confinement can create a bad habit in children and adolescents regarding technology. Excessive use of social networks or an abuse of entertainment focused only on screens can even generate problems of addiction to video games.
Tips to combat the psychological effects of post confinement
Establish schedules
It is important to provide some stability and security for children and adolescents to help them maintain a routine. A simple and creative way to do this is to establish a schedule for each of their activities. Food, hygiene, sleep, leisure, exercise and involve them in the organization and household chores.
Continue and reinforce their learning
While it is true that the world has come to a standstill for a while, this does not mean that our students' learning has come to a standstill. That is why at Logos International School, we recommend that parents encourage students to continue fulfilling their responsibilities. Keeping in touch with their teachers, reinforcing their efforts and congratulating them for a job well done are the keys.
Do not force your feelings
It is normal for children to be fearful and reluctant to go out of the house. In these cases, it is necessary to be calm and not force them to go out. It is important to let them know that their fears are valid, but that as long as the rules are followed, there will be no problem.
Monitor access to technology
The use of social networks allows children and adolescents to stay connected with their friends and peers. By communicating, they can feel less lonely and this communication can even contribute to relieve some of their stress. In order for the use of technology to be an ally, we must supervise the content accessed by our children, prevent them from isolating themselves in their room, limit the time they spend playing video games and encourage them to do physical exercise.
From Logos International School, a private school located in Las Rozas de Madrid, our recommendation is to pay close attention to the behavior of children from now on, in order to correctly identify any of these situations.