During
stressful times, it’s important to make it easy and comfortable for children to
express their concerns to you.
Often,
if we ask a child, “Are you worried?” the answer is likely to be “No.”
But
if you ask instead, “When you are concerned about this, what part worries you?”
your child is more likely to open up.
This
is a statement of assumption — you are letting your child hear that you assume
there are concerns and you’d like to hear his or her thoughts about it.
You
could also distance your child all together from having to reveal personal
concerns by asking what he or she thinks others are feeling right now.
That
seems to be a safe way for young people to express their worries without having
to come out and say that these things bother them as well.
Parents
can then suggest how “the others” might deal with those worries.
The
important point is to get children talking so that you know what they are
feeling and can reassure them properly, no matter the issue.
