WOMS Blog–Counseling

Sherron Van Camp

5 Ways to Help Teens Manage Anxiety About the Coronavirus

March16

Adults can help by making sure adolescents don’t overestimate the dangers or underestimate their ability to protect themselves.

 

People of all ages are concerned about the spread of the coronavirus, and teenagers, as a group, tend to experience emotions especially intensely. If you are raising, teaching or otherwise caring for an adolescent who is feeling very nervous about it, here are five things you can do.

Anxiety can be healthy. But not all adolescents, or adults, know that it typically acts as a useful and protective emotion. Accordingly, teenagers sometimes fear that their heightened nerves signal the onset of a full-blown anxiety disorder. They become worried about the fact that they are worried.

Adults can help young people appreciate that healthy anxiety has a purpose: It alerts us to potential threats and helps us move toward safety. “Feeling some anxiety,” we might say calmly, “makes sense right now. You’re having the right reaction to the emerging news about the coronavirus.”

From there, we can encourage teenagers to channel their discomfort into useful action, such as learning about and following the recommended health guidelines.

For psychologists, anxiety is unhealthy only when it occurs in the absence of a threat — when there is nothing to be worried about at all — or when it reaches heights that are grossly out of proportion to the threat involved, such as when a teenager experiences a panic attack over a minor quiz. We can help adolescents keep their worries about the coronavirus at an appropriate level by making sure they don’t overestimate the dangers or underestimate their ability to protect themselves from those dangers.

Get an informed guide to the global outbreak with our daily coronavirus newsletter.

Toward this end, we might say, “Right now, the health risk from coronavirus is very low for most Americans.” To this we can add, “And there’s a lot you can do to lower your risk even further: Keep your hands clean and away from your face, avoid anyone who might be coughing or sneezing and protect your immune system by getting enough sleep.”

During difficult times, research suggests that teenagers feel better when they turn their attention to supporting others. After a 2006 flood destroyed a small town in southern Poland, one study found that the teenagers who provided the highest levels of social support to fellow flood victims were the ones who went on to express the most confidence about their ability to face challenges in their own lives.

Knowing this, we can remind teenagers that we wash our hands and follow other health recommendations not only to protect ourselves, but also to help to ease the strain on local medical systems. Along the same lines, adults can note that making personal sacrifices — such as postponing a vacation or staying home if we’re not feeling well — helps to reduce the chance of carrying illness into our own communities. If you are stocking up on groceries in case of being asked to self-quarantine, take the opportunity to talk to your kids about the challenges faced by people in need and consider donating nonperishables to a local food bank.

When we fixate on dangers, anxiety grows, and when we turn our attention elsewhere, it shrinks. That said, it might be hard for some teenagers not to obsess about Covid-19 given that the topic pervades headlines and social media, and that concerns about disease spread have been closing schools and causing the cancellation of long-scheduled events.

Further, the constant availability of fresh information about the coronavirus may spur some teenagers (and adults) to compulsively check for news updates. This, however, may offer little emotional relief. Research shows that obtaining clear information about a potential threat helps people feel better, but ambiguous information does nothing to reduce anxiety or the urge to seek reassurance. Remind them not to rely on rumors or unreliable sources.

So long as the updates remain vague, teenagers who are feeling highly anxious about Covid-19 should be encouraged to take a break from seeking, or even accidentally encountering, information about the virus. For example, we might ask teenagers to consider scaling back how often they check their phones for information updates, or to trust that we’ll share any significant news should it arrive. Similarly, we might encourage finding distractions, such as doing their homework or watching a favorite show, while shielding themselves from digital intrusions.

Anxious parents are more likely to have anxious teenagers. This research finding has many possible explanations, but here’s one: young people look to adults for cues about how nervous or relaxed they should be when encountering something new. Wittingly or not, parents are sometimes fearful in a way that puts their children on edge.

Teenagers can tell when adults are saying one thing and feeling another. Offering reassuring words won’t do much good when our own anxiety is riding high. And being worn thin by tension leaves us less able to comfort teenagers and young adults who feel upset about missing events or enjoying spring on their college campuses.

Before trying to support a fretful teenager, tense adults should take steps to calm their own nerves. To do so, they can use the same strategies outlined above.

Modeling a level-headed response is the best way to keep anxiety from getting the better of our teenagers as we all find our way through this new and uncertain challenge.

Surviving Your Teen’s Adolescence

September30

Parenting teens and preteens and can be difficult at times.  This article provides some good information to help with the good times and the more challenging ones. Have a great day!

 7 Strategies for Surviving your Child’s Adolescence

Image result for your kids are amazing

Benchmark Testing February 11-14

February8

6th, 7th, and 8th graders will be taking Benchmarks next week.  Please try not to make any appointments until after 12:30 on testing days.  The schedule is below (NOTE that lunch is at a different time Monday and Tuesday):

Mon,Tues:  Testing 8:15-12:15; LUNCH 12:30-1:00; 6th-8th periods as normal

Wed, Thur: Testing 8:15-11:00; Lunch-8th periods as normal

Monday: 6th-8th  Math

Tuesday: 6th-8th Reading

Wednesday: 8th Science  (6th and 7th grade will have their regular schedule)

Thursday: 8th Social Studies (6th and 7th grade will have their regular schedule)

Congratulations-CHAMPS of the Month

October8

White Oak Middle School –September CHAMPS

6th grade: Jackson Jowell, Aley Dixon

7th grade: Aaron Sharp, Katie Hinch

8th grade: Tristan Blair, Kaylee Sipes

Training for Community

March6

Active Shooter Response Training

The Board of Trustees at White Oak ISD invites the community of White Oak to Active Shooter Response Training. The event will take place in the CC Simmons Auditorium on Sunday, March 11, 2018. The event will begin at 2:30 pm and end by 4:30 pm including a Q&A time at the end of the presentation.

The trainer will be Mark Seguin, TBG Solutions Inc. Tyler Texas. He recently provided training to all employees at White Oak ISD and we feel his message and insight will be beneficial to everyone in White Oak.

There will be an updated report by the district on the security measures in place at WOISD and our commitment to providing a safe learning environment for our students, faculty and staff.

On behalf of the District, I hope to see you next Sunday.

Michael Gilbert

White Oak Schools

Benchmark Testing-February 13-15, 2018

February7

White Oak Middle School students will take Benchmark Tests, February 13th-15th.  We will run an alternate schedule that is similar to our  STAAR testing days.

Testing 8:00-12:15, lunch 12:30-1:00, 6th period-8th periods as normal. Please do not make appointments for your child during this time.

Tuesday- 6th-8th Math Benchmark

Wednesday- 6th-8th Reading Benchmark

Thursday- 7th Writing Benchmark

by posted under Uncategorized | 1 Comment »    

LeTourneau University Career Day – 12/12/17

December5

Permission slips have been sent home for 8th grade students to attend the Career Day Event at LeTourneau University in Longview on December 12, 2017.  This event focuses on individualized information sessions chosen by the students in their areas of skill and interest.

We will leave White Oak Middle School at 11:30 am and return by 3:20 pm. With the new House Bill 5 in place, 8th grade students are required to choose a career pathway before they begin 9th grade, and this career fair is being held before the students are asked to make their course selections in early spring.

Career Fair Trip- November 8, 2017

November3

Permission slips will be sent home on Monday for 8th grade students to attend the Career Inspire Event at Maude Cobb Convention Center in Longview on November 8, 2017.  We will leave White Oak Middle School at 11:30 am and return by 3:20 pm. With the new House Bill 5 in place, 8th grade students are required to choose a career pathway before they begin 9th grade, and this career fair is being held before the students are asked to make their course selections in early spring.

WOMS Champs of the Month–September

October4

Congratulations to our September CHAMPS of the Month!

Teachers from each grade level choose one female and one male who exhibit positive behavior in the classroom and campus.

6th Grade: Kyleigh and Keller

7th Grade:  Kallie and Dylon

8th Grade:  Amalia and Jaiden

 

Hurricane Harvey Relief

August29

White Oak Middle School is teaming up with J-STAR Ministries (Patrick Johnson frequently works with our school district) to send supplies to those affected by Hurricane Harvey.  We are collecting the following items through Friday, 9/1/17:

Baby formula, diapers, wipes

Snack foods

Personal Hygiene items- soap, shampoo, toilet paper, feminine products, toothpaste, toothbrushes, hair brushes

Bleach, trash bags, gloves

Towels & wash cloths

Water/Gatorade

Please drop items off in our office.  Thank you so much for your help!

« Older EntriesNewer Entries »


Skip to toolbar