Illness & hospital
Sick child, procedures, recovery
When a child is sick or hospitalized - or when someone they love is - the normal rules don't apply. Illness brings fear, disruption, and loss of control. Kids need extra support to process what's happening.
What to Know
When a child is sick or hospitalized — or when someone they love is — the normal rules don't apply. Illness brings fear, disruption, loss of control, and confrontation with vulnerability. Kids need extra support to process what's happening, especially when adults around them are stressed and scared too.
Children's understanding of illness depends on age. Young kids may think they caused the illness or that it's punishment. Older kids may worry about outcomes they've googled or overheard. All ages benefit from honest, age-appropriate information and reassurance that they're being taken care of.
What helps: simple, honest explanations; maintaining as much normalcy as possible; staying calm (your anxiety is contagious); letting kids ask questions and express fears; and watching for signs that they need more support than you can provide.
Signs to Watch
- •Intense fear or anxiety about the illness
- •Regression in behavior or skills
- •Changes in sleep, appetite, or mood
- •Acting out in new ways
- •Magical thinking or self-blame about the illness
- •Difficulty talking about what's happening
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