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Building Resilience through Compassion: A Parent Resource

Tips to support healthy coping during stressful times.

Everyone’s needs count, now more than ever.  Practicing compassion toward ourselves is essential. Adjusting our expectations, celebrating small successes and staying connected to sources of support are all examples of building resilience. Below are some tips to support healthy coping.

Safety & Trust

Promote emotional and physical safety through relationship building and predictable routines.

You Children
  • Recognize all feelings are valid.
  • Establish & maintain flexible routines.
  • Practice healthy eating, sleeping & exercise habits. 
  • Identify personal & medical contacts for when you need support.
  • Communicate care through words & actions. 
  • Build in opportunities for children to share their feelings & ask questions. 
  • Establish consistent routines for academics.
  • Remember mistakes help us to grow. 
  • Limit exposure to news & media.

Empowerment & Choice

Honor strengths and address challenges.  Create opportunities for success. 

You Children
  • Reflect on your strengths & how they are helping you.
  • Prioritize & adjust expectations.
  • Practice patience in balancing work & home responsibilities.
  • Seek information from reputable sources & choose what is best for you.
  • Incorporate family games, gratitude, mindfulness & movement activities.
  • Offer specific words of encouragement. 
  • Share your family’s stories of rebounding from challenges.  
  • Provide children choices for a healthy sense of control.
  • Mark the passage of time in a meaningful way.
  • Expand children’s learning to include day-to-day opportunities to support competence (i.e. cooking, cleaning, gardening, organizing)
  • Give children opportunities to play.

Collaboration

Strengthen virtual connections with family, friends, colleagues, and community. 

You Children
  • Participate in family meetings.
  • Practice cultural & faith traditions.
  • Stay connected with supports & build in breaks from screens.
  • Contact your child’s teacher with questions.  
  • Develop family activities where all can contribute.
  • Celebrate birthdays & joyful moments..
  • Offer opportunities for children to share their experiences with friends and family.
  • Connect to your school mental health team.
  • Find creative ways of serving your community. 

Additional Resources

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