HEALTHY FAMILY
Keep On
Keeping On
Continued coping with coronavirus
and what families can do
by Courtney McGee
How some parents
are coping:
“I’ve been dressing up in costume
every day and challenging my
friend’s 5-year-old to a daily
costume contest. My husband
thinks I’m nuts.”
—Julie Klinger-Luht
“We’re planting vegetables,
delving deeper into learning more
about living a minimalist lifestyle,
baking, having old-school DJ
dance parties and reading!”
—Dorothy Freas
“Time to teach ‘real life’ skills:
checking the oil in the car, running
the lawnmower, using basic tools,
cooking. My girls are 12 and 15,
and the overwhelming issue is
boredom (versus stress), so I
think they will welcome something
different to do.”
—David Coyne
“We utilize different parts of the
house and yard for different parts
of the day with my 5-year-old.

Getting up and getting ready for
the day and setting up work and
play times helps.”
—Amy Metzger
32 Washington FAMILY MAY 2020
Stay on schedule
Pantoulis says it is important to maintain
routines as much as possible. Keep sleep
and wake times consistent, and get show-
ered and dressed. “Dress for the social life
you want, not the social life you have,”
she says. Even in isolation, wash up, brush
your teeth and put on some bright colors.

How you dress will impact how you feel.

Make self-care a priority. When we’re
stressed out, healthy habits fall by the way-
side. “Stress and eating don’t mix well, and
we find ourselves overindulging, forget-
ting to eat and avoiding food,” Pantoulis
says. Stay hydrated and eat sensibly, rec-
ognizing that good nutrition will help
give you the strength to weather a crisis.

Create a toolkit of items that may soothe
you when you’re feeling anxious and over-
whelmed: a cozy blanket, a journal, a
coloring book, bubbles, favorite photos
or small treats, and help children do the
same with items that bring them joy
and relaxation.

Get your three 30s
Throughout the course of your day, make
sure to fit in three critical half-hour
activities: getting outside, moving your
body with purpose and connecting with
other people.

Pantoulis suggests that if you are con-
cerned about the risk of contact with
others, you may opt to go outside in the
early morning or late evening or just make
a point of opening windows and experi-
encing the satisfaction of fresh outdoor
air. Purposeful body movement could be
following an exercise video or simply cut-
ting loose and dancing to your favorite
music like nobody’s watching (because
they’re not).

The other 30-minute slot of your day
should include reaching out to other peo-
ple to find or offer support. FaceTime or
Zoom conferencing are great ways to con-
nect for virtual “play dates” at any age.

Help the kids check in with their friends
this way, too.

Be a good playmate
Play with your kids. “Children rarely
ISTOCK / GETTY IMAGES PLUS: SAM THOMAS
I n a full-blown global pandemic, I find
myself wistful for this time last year,
when a measles outbreak was the big-
gest health story around.

The COVID-19 crisis is tough to write
about because … well, because everything
just seems harder right now. Things aren’t
just changing week to week but minute
by minute. The only certain thing is
uncertainty. That’s unnerving for anyone,
especially children, who rely on predict-
ability and structure for comfort. Schools
are closed, trips have stopped, people are
fearful for the lives of their loved ones.

Then add in isolation from friends and
extended family, loss of income and the
cancellation of events of all kinds.

Oh, and throw on heaps of pressure to
maintain a child’s schooling at home. It’s
overwhelming. Tensions are high, patience
is thin, emotions are raw and, more often
than not, concentration on even routine
tasks is … wait, what was I saying?
Let’s consider some ways that fami-
lies can overcome the stress and fear of
this unprecedented time. Here, Lauren
Pantoulis, a licensed professional coun-
selor who sees children, adolescents and
adults, shares the mental health advice
she is giving to her clients during this
challenging time.