Been There, Done That: Warding off the Bogey Monster of Change

Image courtesy of Shaneshots

Change is inevitable, right? Death and taxes and all of that. Well, try explaining that to a child. Somehow your best logic will probably fail to impress them. Children like structure and if you have a child like mine whose anxiety goes straight through the roof when something new and unexpected comes up, well, you know just what havoc it can wreak on their little lives and yours, for that matter. But how on earth can you avoid it?

Here is a terrific way to help ward off the Bogey Monster of Change -

Gather several of your child's favorite plush animals or Little People dolls and role-play the upcoming event with your child. Work through the entire thing, start to finish, allowing and encouraging them to play some of the roles involved. We did this with our 6 year old when we were preparing for her Tonsillectomy this past summer. I had all of the characters - her Dad, myself, Grammie, her, doctors, nurses, you name it. We designated one area 'Home' and one area the 'Hospital'. We went through the entire process from waking up that morning, to getting ready and leaving the house, to arriving at the hospital, to checking in, changing into the hospital gown and getting on the bed. We played out talking to both her surgeon and anesthesiologist. We went through giving Mom and Grammie hugs and kisses as you ride on the magic bed to the operating room and talked about what it would be like in there. We role played her going to sleep for the doctors and waking up with the nurses, with Mom coming to be with her and getting to have green popsicles afterward. We went through what the IV would be like in her arm and when they would take it out and then getting dressed to go home. We even role played driving home and having her sisters there to greet her. Everything. And the purpose of all of this, you ask? When the day actually arrived for her surgery, she felt as though she had already been there, done that. Everything was so much less traumatic because she knew what to expect and there were no bogeymen of change waiting to 'get' her at every turn.

Role playing can be used for the first day of school, moving to a new neighborhood, having relatives come for the Holidays, even rearranging the furniture... anything where there is the element of the unknown and change. Children are funny critters. Love them as we do, we often want to spare them from trauma whenever possible but often times, it simply cannot be done. This is one simple way to lessen the anxiety and teach them a helpful self-sustaining skill at the same time.

~reposted from me on Beautiful! Fabulous!~



Make sure you check out my great new Review and Giveaway Blog, 3 P's Mama Says... where somethin' is ALWAYS happening!

Parenting+Change