The Pandemic has been tough on all of us. Those tiny tots have had to face so much physically and mentally without them even knowing, why it is happeneing to them. With schools being shut down since the month of March, Children are at home indefinetely.
Yes, it is true that they are safe at home, but still sometimes, we are able to entertain them only for a certain amount of time. With no maids, working from home, attending work calls and multi tasking children’s classes, this pandemic has been no less stressful for the children. Yes, we barely consider the feelings and emotions of our children but their physical and mental health have also been at stake during this time. Children constantly need our attention and most of the people, who live in nuclear families in the cities it is next to impossible to be with the children 24*7.
Yes, we have all the priviledge and money in the world. Some people unfortunately in the present times even do not have the basics. But that does not mean that our tender kids are meant to be unhappy. No amount of toys can replace the happiness that they get from running around carefree in the society premises. We can never buy them companionship through money.
The problem is people like us are never allowed to express our pain or unhappiness, just because we have comfort in our lives. People often talk and share quotes about Mental Health but when one of us express our unhappiness about something, they say Oh But you have everything, why are you sad. Online classes ae a good way to ensure that the children have a routine of their own. Initially Online Classes were also difficult because children would feel sad and overwhelmed when they saw their classmates on Camera and could not play in reality.
We do not want to give them screen time throughout the day, but sometimes for some of us that only seems like an option. Children are meant to be free birds. They need to go out and run without any inhibition, in societies, if children’s voice increases even by a decibel, we have calls from the neighbours.I understand that everyone has a right to stay in peace in a society but they are children. We elders have seen what life is, but with children we are restraining them at the very begining. Those tender minds have no clue what life in reality is.
It is equally overwhelming for us parents too because it is next to impossible for us to keep them entertained 24*7, take care of our professional work, take care of our house and not be depressed ourselves. Even though we may have a sheltered and a safe house, enough food to eat, but yes even we are suffering because of this pandemic. Even food and shelter comes to us at the cost of our hardwork. IT is only when we also work hard for about 18 hours a day, we can maintain the lifestyle that we are having right now. Nothing comes for free.
Recently, I saw an image on Social Media about how there are three types of people during the pandemic.
- Those who have a comfortable job and are working from home, saving half their salaries and thinking how to invest them;
- The second one’s who are out there on the field, trying hard to fight Covid directly;
- The Third ones are the people who are seriously suffering and without food and shelter.
Every statement mentioned hereinabove is true, exccept for the fact that they only tell you half the reality of the first lot. If the people, i.e. the Corporate employees do not work from home, they also face insecurities of Job loss and Salary Cut. The same Corporate employee is also putting equal number of hourse in his daily work and that is the reason why today everything is still accessible 24*7. What people forget is the expensives have still not reduced. We still need to pay our whatever limited bills that we have.
The worst condition is where women are also working. A lot of women had to quit their jobs because our society is still not sensitive to the fact that when women work from home, they need to work equally as hard as men. A lot of women quit their jobs because there was nobody to take care of their children. That did make a lot of women depressed. God Forbid if a work call comes, we are supposed to keep our children quiet and in some cases it is extremly difficult to explain the children why, they have to be extremly quiet. At the end the only solution left is to hand them over Electronic Devices so that we can carry on with our work.
The one counter argument that I always get for children getting addicted to mobile phones is that earlier children were not so stubbord. What people forget is the lifestyle then was entirely different. Today couples barely have a child or two, earlier the entire building was one family. They had company to play.
The children could never feel lonely. The age when children need to bond and develop their motor skills we have to lock them up in the houses.
I know this lockdown is important till the time, we find a vaccination for the same. I am not complaining about the lockdown but just sharing my problems because as a human being even my problems matter. I do not have to be extremly rich or extremly poor to express my difficulties. As a normal human being , I a bound to break down emotionally because I am a Human Being. I do not want to show to the world that I am super strong and achieved so much during the lockdown. I am a normal mother and wife, who has her share of difficulties.
Dear Parents,
It is absolutely normal to breakdown and feel overwhelmed. You do not have to pretend to be perfect in front of everyone to satisfy their ego. Your Children will have emotional meltdown, you do not have to be sorry for that. Let them express what is there in their minds.
It is better that children are able to express their emotions in front of you. Instead of keeping their feelings inside them and letting them turn into negative thoughts, let the talk about it. If they are hurt, let them cry, if they disagree, then let them express their disagreement. They are also entitled to have opinions. Let children be children.
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