Dr. Upasana Chadda, Director of the Mindscapes Counseling Center, and Dr. Manoj Sharma, Professor of Clinical Psychology at NIMHANS, discussed how children and parents may live with children without them in an interview with Chaiti Narula in India Today at Mind Rocks 2021. Friends 18 months due to Covid-19 school shutdown. The debate touched on crucial topics such as the several forms of addiction that are prevalent among adolescents at this time, how parents can assist themselves, how to eliminate medical religion, and the secret question that keeps kids from getting mental health care.
Dr. Upasana Chadda said how the children, teens, and parents should deal with Covid-19 it’s been noted that because no physical courses are held during the outbreak, 2-year-olds enrolled in kindergarten are now prohibited from touching their peers. For these very young children, social networking and growth are critical, and, unfortunately, they have no concept of what school is about because they only know about online programs, if that. At the moment, there is a lot of loneliness, depression, and anxiety in young people and these young children are also coping with health issues, and simple things like mosquito bites may become into significant complications, Dr. Chadda explained.
Some children have lost their parents and I want to emphasize the need for communication and parents should check on their children frequently. Every night before bedtime, parents should speak with their children about their day. Parents should inquire about their child’s day and share their expertise, according to Dr. Chadda. During Covid-19, there was a lot of gaming addiction. According to Dr. Manoj Sharma, online teaching should be done at home in a family setting, and both parents and children should be aware of the dangers and went on to say that the World Health Organization has introduced a type of high-tech equipment. What should be allowed in different age groups of children and sports can sometimes be problematic, but they can also meet child psychological needs and claims that online games give kids a place to meet and interact with classmates and that award-based games make them feel good about themselves and achievements. In the offline world, this is difficult to come by. He told parents that many of the same requirements that were supplied on the playground could be met in the home. As a result, parents should discuss this with their children, and if they fail, they should seek professional assistance.
According to Dr. Upasan Chadda, parents should approach it with kindness and set rules for their children’s usage of technology. He also claims that many gadgets now have mechanisms that allow you to track what they’re being utilized for. This will enable parents to keep track of how much time their children spend on social media and playing games. Recreational activities can be used to communicate. There is epidemic stress, as well as school closures and the inability to see friends and classmates for 18 months, which has had a significant impact on children, teens, and parents. Simultaneously, it’s easy to lose track of the balance between physical touch and technology-based interaction, such as excessive usage of OTT platforms or hours spent playing or scrolling on social media.
Parents and children may be involved in some form of entertainment, according to Drs. Manoj Sharma and can increase communication. We need to examine whether we can maintain a healthy mix of online and offline leisure activities. We must also be familiar with digital hygiene, and parents must be role models for their children, he said.
Children, according to Dr. Upasana, will follow in their parents’ footsteps. As a result, when children see their parents reading books, they may do so. To break the law by going to a psychiatrist or counselor in many parts of India, seeing a mental health professional is still necessary. Our government programs must emphasize that protecting mental health is better than curing. You do not have to be mentally ill to see a doctor, explains Dr. Chadda. He emphasizes that seeing a counselor looks at whether there is something about you or your child that is preventing him or her from learning or accomplishing things. It’s important to stop when you see these tracks. You go to a counselor to fix you or better understand your thinking, it’s like going to a hairdresser to fix your hair, she says.
For both parents and children, steps must be taken to curb the cycle of addiction. Parents must first acknowledge that they are using technology, which is the first step in controlling it, says Drs. Manoj Sharma. Being busy or always wanting to get into technology or things are the first three things one has to remember, he said. Second, they must determine whether or not they influence these circumstances. Third, after they are aware of the hazards, once all three of them have been removed from their life, they may participate in the abuse of technology or narcotics, he added., it was time to seek medical care.
Dr. Manoj Sharma has something to say to young people is to be cautious of your technology or material usage patterns and recognize that if your usage has an impact on your lifestyle, there may be concealed indications that urge you to get treatment and determine whether you are capable of dealing with particular mental health issues. If not, ask your relatives for assistance. If that doesn’t work, you may consider looking for a mental health specialist online. When a child is being treated, confidentiality is an issue. Children frequently fear that if they seek help from a therapist or counselor, their parents would drag them back to their troubles.
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