Dr. Bruce Perry, child psychologist and trauma expert, has a helpful guide for parents looking for answers. His research on handling stress and staying regulated can inform us as we’re faced with challenges ahead. In a recent Psychology Today article he shares 8 tools for parents to use during the Coronavirus pandemic, even throughout the summer months:

1. Structure your day - Our children are more tolerant to stress when it is introduced in predictable ways, such as daily chores, bedtime routines, etc.

2. Have family meals when you are able - Mealtime is a great way to preserve structure and routine while checking in with our children.

3. Limit media - Just like the Coronavirus, emotions are very contagious, and children often sense when others are anxious or upset. 

4. Exercise - Now is the time to be creative and get bodies moving while practicing social distancing...The only way to move from these super-high anxiety states, to calmer more cognitive states, is rhythm. 

5. Reach out - “The most powerful buffer in times of stress and distress is our social connectedness; so let’s all remember to stay physically distant but emotionally close. Reach out and connect.”

6. Help others - Perry emphasizes the moral obligation of those of us coming from a privileged background, who have learned resilience and coping strategies in predictable environments, to look after the distressed and marginalized. 

7. Practice good sleep hygiene - We can get more restful sleep if we exercise in the morning or afternoon, wind down with calming activities, and avoid late eating and screen watching.

8. Stay positive and future-focused - Everybody will be socially, emotionally, and physically healthier if we help each other model positive responses to stress. 

Dr. Bruce Perry - “This is a trying and unprecedented time. Let us be gentle with ourselves and practice self-compassion. Let’s allow ourselves to grieve missed time with loved ones, travel plans, celebrations, and stability.”