{"id":7074,"date":"2011-09-25T04:10:14","date_gmt":"2011-09-25T04:10:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/parentingtoday.com\/anew\/?page_id=7074"},"modified":"2019-07-23T16:43:59","modified_gmt":"2019-07-23T23:43:59","slug":"talk-to-kids-media-violence","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/childdevelopmentinfo.com\/how-to-be-a-parent\/communication\/talk-to-kids-media-violence\/","title":{"rendered":"How To Talk To Kids About Tragedies In The Media"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Young children, teens, and even adults may be disturbed by images and stories of people getting hurt in the media or on TV.\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/childdevelopmentinfo.com\/development\/helping-child-cope-situational-anxiety\/\">Children can become anxious<\/a> and fearful about the world around them.\u00a0It is important to keep an eye on your TV guide at the start of each week and be aware of what is scheduled during your children&#8217;s viewing time.<br \/>\n<!--more--><\/p>\n<p>Try to watch television with your kids (especially during the News), listen to their questions and answer them honestly.\u00a0Tragedies affect everyone, both children, and adults.\u00a0Children need to talk about their fears, frustration, and disbelief.\u00a0It is important that we are watchful for these emotions and encourages open discussions.<\/p>\n<p>Children may be worry:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>that the event could happen to themselves or a loved one;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>that they could be separated from someone they love or be left alone;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>about their safety or that of their loved ones.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Depending on their age and level of maturity, children will perceive things differently to adults.\u00a0Remember with younger children (up to nine years old) to be uncomplicated in your explanations without going into gory details, especially if the tragedy is extremely unpleasant.\u00a0Be supportive and reassuring during your discussion.\u00a0Older children will be able to handle more information.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Discussion Techniques:<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Be truthful<\/strong> \u2013 Children need to understand what is happening around them to feel secure.\u00a0Provide them with facts about what happened and acknowledge it was a terrible and frightening event.\u00a0Help them to see that we share their feelings.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Encourage any questions<\/strong> \u2013 Ensure your child feels as though they can approach you to ask questions as much as they need.\u00a0Sometimes a child will process a tragic event much later and come back to you again for more discussion.\u00a0Remind them that questions are welcome.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Feelings are normal<\/strong> \u2013 Some children may take a while to get over tragic events and that is perfectly normal.\u00a0Allow them to cry if they need to and show their emotions.\u00a0Share your feelings about what happened to them.\u00a0Help your kids to verbalize their feelings with you.\u00a0Secure them with a warm cuddle and remind them that they are safe.\u00a0Keep things in perspective and remind them that not all people are harmful towards others.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Unfortunately over the past few years, in particular, we have been exposed to numerous mass killings that have been disturbing and heartbreaking for all of us.\u00a0Images in the media and discussions around the world can be quite alarming for our kids.\u00a0It is imperative that we recognize these events and explain what has happened.<\/p>\n<p>Sometimes our kids hear stories from others that may not be correct, so it is up to us to ensure they have the right perception.<br \/>\nWhen talking about tragedy to kids, your choice of words really depends on the age of the children.\u00a0In any case, though you should:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Ensure they feel safe \u2013 explain to them that it is a real misfortune what has happened and that we all feel for those people who were there or are experiencing pain.<\/li>\n<li>Stay close by and show affection as they desire \u2013 give them a hug and reassure them that their world is safe.\u00a0Keep them among familiar things until they&#8217;re feeling more secure, for example, family and friends.<\/li>\n<li>Allow the children to talk about it and how it has made them feel.\u00a0Honestly answer their questions and try to put their minds at ease.\u00a0By not talking about it may make them think it is taboo.<\/li>\n<li>Be watchful for behavioral changes \u2013 kids who are behaving differently, such as not sleeping at night, feel frightened, don&#8217;t want mum to go to work, they want to start sleeping in with you may need some more reassurance, time and talking.\u00a0If it continues it might be time to seek professional help.<\/li>\n<li>For teens \u2013 talk with them, listen and ask questions.\u00a0Stabilise the subject by asking &#8220;What are your friends saying about it?\u00a0How are you feeling?&#8221; Make sure they&#8217;re receiving the true facts. Tell them you&#8217;re there for them.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Array<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":6983,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-7074","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>How To Talk To Kids About Tragedies In The Media | Parenting Today<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Young children, teens and even adults may be disturbed by images and stories of people getting hurt in the media or on TV. 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