How adults deal with natural disaster related stress varies, and so it is with kids. There are an estimated 9 million students in the U.S. and Puerto Rico that have been directly affected by the spate of natural disasters we had in 2017. From hurricanes to floods, to fires… it seems the children have seen it all.
Mental health officials in schools across the nation are working with these children to ease the transition from living in their family home one minute…to living in a emergency shelter, or sleeping on grandma’s couch the next.
Childhood disaster stress manifests itself in different ways…from poor academic performance, outbursts, and bad behavior…to skipping school altogether.
School counselors, administrators and teachers, even bus drivers…are now on the look-out for any change in behavior from the children that have gone through a recent natural disaster.
Remember, emergency preparedness and resiliency are the keys to your family’s safety in a natural/manmade disaster. Be self-reliant.
