Hello Families! Let’s Check In
January is almost over. How are we doin’? As a mom of a child on the spectrum, I find myself often checking in on my son to see how he is doing not only academically but also socially. Happy to report that he seems to be doing well in both areas. To my surprise, I found out that my daughter is struggling with feelings of sadness.
She is always smiling and happy when she comes home. So, to hear that she feels sad at school was unexpected. I ask the children each night during dinner how the day went, is there anything you want to share about your day, do you have any concerns you want to talk about, etc. Having recently watched yet another story on the Today show about the struggles of mental well being in our children, I decided to check in with her in a different way the other night. At bedtime, the real version of how her day went came pouring out. She stated that she is always happy to be home and doesn’t think about the things that made her sad once she sees me.
It sounds delightful to hear that her home brings her happiness but I think it is extremely important to know that she is not so happy at school. Therefore, I feel so fortunate that I seem to have stumbled upon the right time to really check in with her. I still ask about their day at the dinner table but now I know that the more quiet, lights on dim, one-on-one time with mommy is really what makes her feel comfortable when sharing the things that make her sad.
I know kids will be kids at school and feelings will get hurt which I cannot fix but after only two day of having this evening chat I feel like we are on the right track to her feeling better about how to cope with these feelings. We have a couple of things we are adding to our routine to help her and she is already more optimistic about facing these set backs. I know it is a work in progress and we have to see how things go but my biggest take away is….find the right moment for each child when and how to check in. Hope this sparks a moment for someone in your life.
#checkin #thanksTodayShow #mentalwellness
https://www.healthychildren.org/English/healthy-living/emotional-wellness/Pages/default.aspx
https://www.nih.gov/health-information/emotional-wellness-toolkit