Just knowing what’s going on in your child’s head is a full-time job for any parent. But with the prevalence of social media, it’s never been harder – or more important.
Westerville City School District administration is looking at healthy ways to talk about mental health. The district hopes to create an environment where children feel safe to express themselves. It’s not uncommon for young people to experience stress, anxiety and depression, so it’s important that schools focus on mental health while also providing resources to help students recognize harmful stigmas.
WCSD student assistance programs coordinator Tami Santa says students nowadays are unable to escape from a constant flood of information, and can feel overwhelmed if they’re not given the tools to handle it.
“Everything impacts our kids in such different ways. If something happened on a Thursday or Friday 10 or 15 years ago, it was usually forgotten about by Monday,” says Santa. “There was sort of that restart button to allow things to unwind. But now, there’s usually a video or something that has been put out on some social media vehicle and it’s relentless, without any relief.”
Santa suggests that parents monitor screen time. She also recommends looking for major behavioral changes in your child. It’s typical for children to resist authority growing up, but there may be more going on. Each child is different and all struggles are individual, but there is never a reason to feel alone.
WCSD is offering parents tools such as a Student Well Being page on its website, Westerville.k12.oh.us, which provides links to a variety of mental health and wellness resources, hotlines, and other sites to give parents information on anything their child may need. Additionally, WCSD offers in-person programs for both students and parents.
“Starting in elementary, we have school counselors and social so that there is always a point person, along with having social and emotional curriculum which teaches students to know their bodies and emotions,” Santa says. “We also hold small groups for issues such as grief, divorce, creating friendships and partner with Concord Counseling Services, which offers students ongoing treatment, if needed.”
Parents can attend a Parent Prep event Jan. 25, which will offer sessions throughout the day on a variety of topics. Sessions are available for parents of children in all grade levels, including student mental health, college readiness, organizational skills and more. The educational series has tips, workshops and other resources.
“Our hope is to partner with our parents. We understand that this is hard,” says Santa. “It’s hard to navigate this parenting world and it’s hard to navigate the world as our students, so maybe we can lean on some of our resources together and provide positive tools for our families.”
Zoe Glore is an assistant editor. Feedback welcome at zglore@cityscenemediagroup.com.
