COVID-19 is creating new parenting challenges. It can be hard to know how to best support your teens as their school, college, and social plans are disrupted in unprecedented ways.
Families are grieving the loss of important milestones and rites of passage. Children may be withdrawn, angry, anxious, frustrated, or difficult to connect with. Your teen may feel that their emerging sense of independence is being taken away. The uncertainty of the situation makes it especially difficult to make big decisions about the future.
Here is a list of resources for parents of teenagers related to:
- Grief and Ambiguous Loss
- Loss of Structure and Building New Rituals
- The Importance of Hobbies
- Family Dinners and Making the Most of Mealtimes
Grief and Ambiguous Loss
COVID-19 brings with it the reality or the risk of losing loved ones. But it has also brought many other losses and changes, some of which are nebulous and hard to define.
- That Discomfort You’re Feeling Is Grief, by Scott Berinato
- Ambiguous Loss: How to live with the pain of uncertainty, by Marilyn A. Mendoza, PhD
- The Frozen Sadness of Ambiguous Loss, by Marilyn Gardner
Loss of Structure and Building New Rituals
Teens thrive on routine, and many adolescents are struggling as they lose the structure of school, extracurriculars, and social life.
- 10 Tips for Talking with Teens about Routines, by Courtney Harris
- No summer camp, no problem. The value of play during a pandemic, by Linda Rodriguez McRobbie
- Laziness does not exist. But unseen barriers do, by Devon Price
The Importance of Hobbies
Anecdotally, adolescents who have interests and hobbies (other than screentime) seem to be managing the pandemic better than those who don’t.
- “No Hobbies or Interests? Here’s What You Should Do” By Layla Ashraf
- How to find a hobby
Family Dinners and Making the Most of Mealtimes
Many families are able to spend more time together during COVID-19 than in the past, however this might be unfamiliar territory for families who are used to being on-the-go.
The Family Dinner Project offers ideas for creating lively conversation, overcoming common challenges around mealtimes, and bringing your family closer.