Save the Children warned this Thursday that children constitute one of the most vulnerable groups in psychological terms after the passage of DANA through the province of Valencia, presenting different symptoms, among which mutism, recurring nightmares, fear of atmospheric phenomena, the fear of going outside and the reluctance to talk about what happened.
He did so through a statement in which he collected statements from Verónica Collado, one of his psychologists who is working on the ground, who argued that it is important not to hide reality from the kids and stressed the need to “explain it to them with adapted language.” at their age and not overinform them.
In the opinion of Verónica Collado, «if we have two children at home, for example, a 14-year-old teenager, who has much more specific questions, we can separate him, take him to his room and give him all the answers he needs. On the other hand, if we have his brother who is six years old, it is not necessary for him to hear this information.
Control minors’ access to news
In turn, Save the Children recommended that families control minors’ access to news related to DANA, since “repetitive images and information can increase anxiety”; while he advised them to “offer boys and girls a more positive vision of the catastrophe, focused on solidarity and what is being done to solve the situation.”
In that sense, Verónica Collado testified that “there is a tendency to think that when a boy or girl does not verbalize, they have less symptoms, but in reality it is quite the opposite,” since “it implies that they do not have the resources at the brain level and cannot communicate either.” or express”, which is why it is “very important to observe, give space and listen”.
He also revealed that “some boys and girls are adopting adult roles, taking on functions that do not correspond to their age.” For this reason, he indicated that “what they need is to return to school, to their routines, to see that they continue to have support in class”, in which “they have a space where they can trust information that at home they are afraid to bring up, not out of terror.” to the parents, but because they do not want to worry.
Psychological symptoms that appeared in the pandemic
Save the Children reported that some psychological symptoms that appeared during the pandemic may reappear now, which Verónica Collado specified as follows: “for boys and girls there is a retraumatizing effect that leads us to covid, to the situation of not being able to attend to schools normally or not being able to leave home in many cases. This causes “an effect called to previous symptoms that they have had, that have not been well purified and that can re-emerge.”
The organization estimated at 71,664 the number of school-age kids who live in municipalities especially affected by DANA and who have been forced to close their educational centers. In that sense, he considered the decision of the Generalitat Valenciana to “reactivate classes as soon as possible” appropriate.
Finally, Save the Children recalled that it has prepared a guide with “clear and brief guidelines for family support in the face of the impact on children and adolescents due to a crisis situation or natural disasters.”
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