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  By: Dwight Bain, LMHC, NCC   Here’s How to Help Your Child Cope Strategies for parents, teachers , and c ounselor s to manag e trau matic stress facing s tudents who are returning to school during the pandemic Traumatic situations create traumatic emotions – that’s normal for adults and kids. Any event outside the usual realm of human experience which is distressing can create helplessness, anxiety or panic. Traumatic stressors usually involve a perceived threat to one’s physical safety or someone close to them. This is an intense psychological reaction to feeling threatened, which is completely normal.  Traumatic stress overwhelms coping mechanisms leaving children feeling out of control and helpless. Continual exposure to the trauma creates a survival reaction of being depleted, exhausted, or worse, self-destructive. Children experience traumatic stress differently based on age and maturity level as this guide will outline to help parents and teachers.  ...

By: Dwight Bain, LMHC, NCC The coronavirus lock-down has been the longest forced shutdown in modern history, and was successful to slow the physical spread of the disease. Shutdowns through early April prevented 60 million US coronavirus infections, a study quoted on CNN reported. https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/08/health/coronavirus- shutdowns-effective-study-wellness-bn/index.html However, for many the extended time of lock down created a mental health crisis. Being isolated from friends or family, sheltering in place for months, being removed from school/work routines, unemployment, months of lost income, fear of going out for routine medical visits, or not having medical coverage to visit a doctor because of losing insurance coverage after lay-off. These and many other factors elevate feelings of helplessness and will complicate the long recovery ahead. Adding to the stress was the news that the United States economy is officially in recession https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/...