I attended a really useful panel discussion recently about family separation & parenting through the coronavirus crisis. What struck me again is the reminder to reach out and seek support if you are struggling. Coronavirus has required us to isolate ourselves and our family but we don’t tend to do so well when we are not interacting with others and seeking comfort. We also tend to keep our high standards of what we expect we should be doing in terms of looking after our children and what we should be doing. Dropping some of those standards is understandable and we should not feel guilty for doing so at such a stressful time. This certainly applies to those who are facing the trauma of divorce and separation whilst being isolated at home. We can often be very hard on ourselves, unfairly.
Above all, children need comfort, reassurance, predictability and love. This can be enormously hard to provide in times of trauma and stress when just getting through the day can be a tall ask. Be kind. Keep talking and reach out if you or your children need any emotional help to get you through this period of time. As Dr Angharad Rudkin (Clinical Psychologist at the University of Southampton) helpfully suggested – drop an ‘anchor’ to steady your ship, keep yourself safe and well until things start to return to some form of normality.