Parents and caregivers may hesitate to speak with children about the war in Ukraine, but Professor Angela Evans in Brock\u2019s Department of Psychology says that conversations on difficult events actually help protect a child\u2019s well-being.<\/p>\n
\u201cChildren whose parents avoid conversations about things like the pandemic or terrorist attacks in the news have been shown to display higher rates of anxiety, internalizing and externalizing behaviours and symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) compared to children whose parents engage in these conversations,\u201d says Evans.<\/p>\n
Data also shows that children tend to fare better in processing difficult news when it is a parent who shares the information, as opposed to a peer or a newscast.<\/p>\n
Evans encourages parents to have age-appropriate conversations with children, meeting them where they are, and says this is possible even at young ages. She has some suggestions for tackling a tough conversation:<\/p>\n
Start by asking what they know<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cFind out what your child knows by asking them and letting them tell you how they feel and what they\u2019re thinking about,\u201d says Evans. \u201cThat\u2019s true for all ages. If we don’t engage in that conversation, we don’t know what they\u2019re thinking or what their fears might be \u2014 or if perhaps it isn\u2019t bothering them at all.\u201d<\/p>\n