For parents

Parenting tips on helping your child cope with trauma

• Pay attention to your child’s reaction to any traumatic incident in the family, school or in the community.

• Adopt simple and positive terms/phrases like “it is okay to not be okay” when communicating with your child

• Refrain from making discouraging comments such as “it’s all in your mind”, “don’t think about it”, “snap out of it”, “since your brother/sister is handling it well, you should be able to do so too” etc.

• Encourage your child to speak up openly when ready and take a break from social media or scheduled activities if they feel overwhelmed.

• Never ignore warning signs such as disturbed sleep, poor appetite, low mood, high level of anxiety, tight chest, poor concentration, nightmares, uncontrollable & frequent crying, bed-wetting, disruptive behaviour etc.

• Talk to the school counsellor so that they can support your child. Help is available and you are NEVER alone.

• Seek professional help if your child continues to display warning signs for more than 2 weeks or threatens to harm themselves/others. Early detention and treatment is important.

For mental health self-assessment tools, chat services and Ask a Therapist services, please visit mindline.sg. For all other resources, please visit MindSG.