The pandemic has triggered a variety of mental health symptoms, including bullying. Over the past year and a half, self-esteem and self-identity have taken a big hit, causing more adolescents to become targets or perpetrators of bullying. Bullying is about power. Those who are hurting from a mental or emotional disorder such as low self-worth, […]
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Ways to Help Kids Emotionally Prepare for School After Covid-19
It has been nearly a year since half of U.S. students have stepped foot on a school campus. While a decrease in academic performance has been one of the adverse effects of long-term distance learning, the lack of social interaction and on-campus instruction has also taken a toll on many students’ mental health. Understandably, several […]
How to Survive a Virtual Back-to-School Year
Many of us are scrambling to prepare for a school year that will be starting virtually. If you’re a working parent, you may be wondering how you’re going to juggle work and have your kids at home, attending school. Your kids may be wondering how they’re going to stay connected to their friends or how […]
How to Help a Child Who Feels Lonely at School
Kids who feel like they have no friends or who have been bullied, can feel very lonely. School can be a place where feelings of loneliness intensify – especially when returning to school after summer break. Sadly, with today’s kids and teens, this is a more common issue than many people realize. Cigna’s 2018 U.S. Loneliness […]
How To Be Friends With Two People Who Don’t Get Along
Being friends with two people who don’t get along or with one who bullies another can be tough. This can be especially difficult for kids and teens. A child may become friends with someone who their existing friend doesn’t like. Or, a child may get stuck in the middle of two friends who used to […]
How to Help Teens Who Have Been Rejected From a Clique
A few months ago, I wrote How to Handle Middle School Bullying, Cliques and Mean Girls. I’ve had many parents reach out after reading that article because their young teens were facing similar issues. Social exclusion, aggression and feeling like you don’t “fit in” are very common among teens. But, really, they can be experienced […]
When Kids ‘Roast’ and Joke Around – Is It Bullying?
‘Roasting’ is not a new occurrence. Many of us grew up hearing roasts such as Yo Mama’s so ugly that…… or Yo Mama’s so fat that…. These Yo Mama jokes may be mean and cruel, but they’re an indirect insult vs. direct – and because of that, they usually aren’t used to bully or intentionally […]
How to Handle Middle School Bullying, Cliques and Mean Girls
A few years ago, one of my friends had a “going into middle school” pool party for her son the summer before he began 6th grade. She purchased a congratulatory card and asked guests to sign it. My friend’s niece, who was just going into high school, commented that she wasn’t sure what she should […]
How to Help Your Child Cope with School-Related Stress
As the end of winter break approaches, there are kids who fear returning to school. These are the kids who have been bullied, feel they have no friends, are struggling academically. There are also kids, especially adolescents and young teens, who worry about whether or not they’ll be accepted back in their clique or how […]
Kids love to ‘roast’ each other. But when does good-natured teasing become bullying?
Republished from Washington Post’s On Parenting dated November 14, 2018. By Eileen Hoenigman Meyer. My tweens enthusiastically relate particularly clever “roasts,” the zingers that ping back and forth among friends. “You’re what happens when women drink when they’re pregnant.” “You’re so ugly your parents asked the doctor for a refund the day you were born.” “You’re […]