“Change is hard at first, messy in the middle, and gorgeous at the end.”
Robin Sharma
Between the pandemic, teacher turnover, school closures, and the developmental and biological changes that youth face, youth have experienced A LOT of change the past several years.
Take a moment here to consider how you handle change. Do you become motivated? Overwhelmed? Happy? Sad? Just consider what emotions come up for you as you think through transitions in your life…
For some, change is welcomed with open arms. Perhaps, you thought of exciting opportunities for new experiences and growth. Or, perhaps, change comes with uncertainty, discomfort, and fear. Maybe there was some positive or negative stress present. No matter the experience, these feelings can be difficult to manage. Children and adolescents are no different, besides the fact that they may not know how to identify, verbalize, express, and manage these feelings. If you are a caregiver who is trying to figure out how to support amid these difficult feelings, you’re not alone.
The biggest and most important difference between how adults handle change and how children handle change is life experience. As people move and stumble through life, they learn to reflect on past experiences to use various skills to navigate current stressors – they problem-solve, manage conflict, regulate their emotions, seek support, take care of themself in the process, etc. Youth may, but more often do not, have those life experiences and skills yet. Those past experiences inform future outcomes allowing for the adult to remain resilient and hopeful. In contrast, for young people, the outcomes of transition may be confusing, uncomfortable, or downright terrifying. Children and adolescents are also resilient and can be incredibly resourceful, but they cannot assume they will figure it all out on their own.
You might be wondering—when children struggle to identify and verbalize their feelings, what might that look like? After speaking with several teachers, school-based counselors, and caregivers (parents of all kinds) the following experiences are reported as current challenges for youth in our communities:
These experiences are normal, and youth are communicating in the ways that they know how that they need support.
So, how can you support youth through transitions?
Remember, Jefferson Center is here!
“Through every change impacting our schools and the children and families in our community, Jefferson Center will always be here to provide quality behavioral health support for all members of our community.”
Julie Dawson, Director of Family Services, Jefferson Center
Reach out and connect with Jefferson Center today.
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