Curb Corona Anger For the Sake of the Kids

      

     I have heard a few stories about young people taking their own lives during the government Corona shut down. I personally know of one. I am sure there are more cases out there than are being reported because suicide is not something that people willingly put out there. It is one of the most tragic ways to lose someone you love. Any loss is tragic but losing someone to suicide is something you can only understand if you have lost someone that way…This blog is not about suicide but about the young people during the governments corona shut down and the possibility that many more young people will decide to end their own lives.

     The tragedy of suicide got me thinking about how this is affecting the kids. The littlest kids are able to adjust to the changes but the tweens and teens must be struggling. They are fragile to begin with but now their young worlds have been rocked hard.

      I know for me as an adult I look at how things are, how cruel people are to one another on social media. The constant fighting and arguing between adults, the hate spewed on a regular basis,  The name calling and the anger people express on social media and all other areas of life.

      We are not able to truly live our lives and there is no end in sight...people on the verge of losing their homes, their business and their livelihood…all of this combined depresses me as an adult so I can only imagine how a child between 10 and 18 years old  who understands much of what is going on must feel. They see all of the nasty and hateful comments on Facebook or in the news. (Sadly many parents allow their kids on FB) They see people at each other’s throats on a regular basis. If you want the country to open up and people to return to work you are evil and told by others that you just want people to die  simply because of your desire that others are able to live. You are told how horrible you are because you care about those who own small businesses and are in danger of losing everything they have worked for. You are awful if you consider all businesses and their employees essential and their need to earn an income just as important as those the government deemed essential.

     Then there are those who are truly afraid of the virus, they are afraid if they get it they are sure to die, there is no possibility they might live. They really feel this fear and I can only imagine how scary that is for them.

    All of these feelings are passed on to the kids by adults and they are not equipped mentally or emotionally to handle them.

     Then there are the kids own fears. They don’t just carry around the fears or anger they see adults displaying, they have their own fears to deal with too:   Will I ever go to school again? Will I get to see my friends again? Will my parents go to jail if they don’t obey the stay at home laws? Will my parents go to jail if they open up their business so they can take care of us? Will we starve because my parents can’t work?  Will we become homeless because my parents aren’t allowed to work? Where will we live then? Will my parents go to jail because someone turns them in for inviting my cousins over to visit because we were lonely for each other?  Will I ever see gram and gramps again? Will they die from old age before I see them again? Will someone shoot us if we go to the park to play all or if we decide to have gram and gramps over? Will my family get sick and die or will I get sick and die? Will we ever get to leave our homes again? What is the world going to look like from now on? Will we be free or will we live like prisoners in our own homes forever?  Will this ever end? These may not be big fears to some but to a young person it has to be overwhelming. Then add the adult fears to this….well, I just feel for the youth.

    It is gloomy out there. Some say it will be months before the shut downs end, to a young person, that is a lifetime, it is their youth!   If you don’t think they see or know what is going on, think again! They are more perceptive than people give them credit for. They are worried, scared and uncertain and the adults are the ones responsible for their fears!

   

    So before we lose more of our young people to suicide we need to find ways to give them hope because if we as adults feel such anger and fear or see no hope how can we expect the kids to be ok? I know what I believe the solution is however am sure many will disagree because it is not status quo and really to help the kids it doesn’t matter.

     Mostly though I know that we have to all learn to respect one another, not always agree but respect each other. I have been guilty of thinking nasty thoughts. I even express them to those closest to me but I will not fight with anyone in a public forum about the government shut down and I for certain will not discuss it with kids. They do not need that. They need reassurance that their world is not crumbling down around them even if many adults might feel it is…. Stop public fighting, regardless of whether or not you agree many adults need to stop being so hateful and cruel to each other. The Corona anger needs to halt and be curbed for the sake of the kids!

   I would love constructive comments to this blog...what do you think the solution is for our kids?  Are you seeing problems with your own kids or kids you know? Any other ideas?  Please comment on the blog so I can see what you have to say.



+kids and coronavirus
+kids and shut down
+kids and suicide
+adults fighting