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As conflicts in Ukraine escalate, children may see and hear things about the crisis through news headlines, social media, friends discussing the topic at school, or overheard conversations from adults. Situations like this can lead to feelings of uncertainty, anxiety, and fear. Children might have questions about the images, stories, and conversations they are seeing and hearing. Parents and caregivers should address them. Here are some tips on how to approach these conversations with children: Find Out What They Know Ask your kids questions to find out what information they already know about. They may have formed a completely different picture of the situation than you have. Take the time to listen to what they think, and what they have seen or heard. Consider your child’s age and development. Younger kids may not grasp the difference between fact and fantasy. For most kids, it’s not until they are 7 or […]

It’s hard to believe that we are about to start our third pandemic year. We had all hoped that by now COVID-19 would be a thing of the past and life would be getting back to normal. Instead, a variant called omicron is quickly spreading. Lots of people are getting infected from this new variant, and hospitals are filling up. Many people are feeling frustrated and defeated. If you are one of them, it might be tempting to give in and just drop your guard completely. After all, lots of people are saying that the symptoms of omicron are usually mild, and it feels like everyone will eventually get COVID-19 anyway, right? Not so fast. There are a few important things to consider. If everyone gets sick at the same time, lots of people will need the hospital at once. That isn’t safe. The more crowded the hospitals are, the […]

The media is full of news about omicron, a new coronavirus variant. A variant is a version of the virus that is a little different from the original virus. Variants can look different or behave differently from the original virus. For example, they can differ in how contagious they are, how sick they make people, and how they respond to vaccines and medicines. We are still learning about how the omicron variant differs from the coronavirus that we are already familiar with. While we wait for health experts to study the data about omicron, some parents are wondering whether they should vaccinate their child as soon as possible, or whether they should wait and see how things develop with this new variant. What Do We Know? The answer is that all children ages 5 and older should get fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as soon as possible. Here is why we […]

Well, it happened. After almost two years of the pandemic, COVID-19 has found its way into our house. As an emergency room pediatrician turned medical writer and editor for Nemours KidsHealth, I thought I was as prepared as anyone can be. I read and write about COVID-19 every day. But even with all that experience I still learned more than I ever wanted to know in the last four weeks, which felt like four months. As mom to two boys ages 10 and 6 years, I learned that having a child with COVID-19 is hard (and a little bit scary), but planning, patience and creativity can help you come out on the other side. Here is what I learned. Don’t Play the Blame Game We spent the pandemic having a healthy respect for the virus. We followed all the guidelines. We didn’t eat at restaurants, we had outdoors Thanksgiving and […]

Squid Game. The latest Netflix/internet obsession. After admittedly watching the series myself (spurred by patients asking about it), there are a few things parents should know. There is enough violence, ethical dilemmas, and other mature content to draw a hard line: your young children should absolutely not watch this show. Still, teachers and schools are reporting kids emulating Squid Game at recess and in the classroom. The show itself is rated mature (17+). Teens of all ages, however, are likely to watch it or hear about it. Keep these things in mind as you navigate their viewing:  Watch Squid Game, or at least one episode, before you allow your teens to view it. You should be prepared, minimally, to have conversations about the difficult topics and those are easier to navigate when you have seen the content as well. If you are a parent of younger kids, keep them in […]

As the coronavirus pandemic continues to surge, doctors are warning about another well-known respiratory illness, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), spreading among infants and young children. There has been an unusual summertime uptick in RSV cases. And it’s happening at the same time as the Delta variant of coronavirus is infecting young children and teens. Cases of RSV in kids and older adults usually occur in fall through early spring. But due to a reduced spread of RSV during the winter months of 2020-2021 — because of quarantine and masking guidelines — the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warns that many cases are now surfacing earlier this year. Most children get an RSV infection by the age of two. As some areas lift mask mandates and other restrictions, there is a reappearance of the virus occurring. That means older infants and young children who would have gotten it last […]