科学美国人60秒 SSS 帮助孩子应对与新冠肺炎有关的忧虑（在线收听）

This is Scientific American's 60-second Science, I'm Susanne Bard.

这里是科学美国人——60秒科学系列，我是苏珊娜·巴德。

Stay-at-home orders due to COVID-19 have been in place for several months now.

因新冠肺炎颁布的居家令已实施数月之久。

For many parents, these requirements have led to a balancing act between working from home and attending to their children.

对许多家长来说，这些要求让他们要在居家办公和照顾孩子之间左右平衡。

Families have been forced to adapt to unexpected disruptions in their daily routines,

家人被迫适应日常生活中意想不到的中断，

and kids have been isolated from their peers—all of which can affect their psychological well-being.

孩子与同龄人隔离，所有这些都会影响他们的心理健康。

"I think even though everyone is having some experience of loss and grief over not getting to do the things they're used to doing,

“我认为，尽管每个人都因为不能做自已习惯做的事而体会到失落和悲伤，

we're going to see a lot of individual differences in how kids react."

但我们会看到儿童的反应存在很大的个体差异。”

University of Washington psychologist Liliana Lengua.

华盛顿大学的心理学家莉莉安娜·伦古阿说到。

She says a child's temperament has a big influence on how they respond to stressful events.

她表示，孩子的性格对他们应对压力事件的方式有很大影响。

"Kids who were already prone to being fearful or anxious might be especially anxious about getting sick or about family members getting sick."

“本来就有恐惧或焦虑倾向的孩子可能尤其会对生病或家人生病感到忧虑。”

Very sociable kids may struggle more with social isolation than others do. And kids who are easily frustrated may become even more so.

就社交隔离而言，非常善于交际的孩子可能比其他人做更多抗争。而容易受挫的孩子可能会变得更加沮丧。

But despite these differences, Lengua says parents can help their kids cope by validating their feelings.

但伦古阿表示，尽管存在这些差异，家长可以通过认可孩子的感受来帮助他们应对。

"Validating really means hearing, listening, recognizing what the source of that person's emotional experience is—and recognizing the truth of it."

“认可意味着留意、倾听、承认一个人情绪体验的源头，并认同其真实性。”

It's also important to check in with kids about the very real fears they face.

与孩子们沟通他们所面临的真实恐惧也非常重要。

"Inviting children to talk openly, and sometimes showing our own vulnerability, can be helpful in facilitating that conversation."

“请孩子们开诚布公地交谈，时而表现出我们自己的脆弱性，有助于促进交流。”

For teens, being cut off from friends can be especially challenging.

对青少年来说，与朋友切断联系可能尤其具有挑战性。

"And I think all parents can do at that point is validate their youth:

“我认为在这一点上，所有家长都能做的就是认可他们的青春：

'This is awful. This is hard. I know this is really a loss for you.' And just recognize those feelings and not dismiss them."

‘这很糟糕。也很艰难。我知道这对你来说是种损失。’只要认可这些感受，不要忽视它们。”

But how can a parent tell if their child might be developing more serious mental health issues?

但家长要如何判断他们的孩子是否会产生更严重的心理健康问题？

Lengua suggests keeping an eye out for big changes from their normal selves.

伦古阿建议留意孩子超出正常状态的重大变化。

"Has this gotten really so extreme that it's interfering with that child's functioning or their relationships?"

“这是否会变得非常极端，以致于妨碍到孩子的功能或人际关系？”

For example, more intense and frequent emotional breakdowns, an inability to enjoy anything or withdrawal from the family.

比如更强烈和更频繁的情绪崩溃，无法享受任何东物或不参与家庭正常。

In those cases, Lengua recommends seeking professional guidance, which could start with the family pediatrician.

在这些情况下，伦古阿建议寻求专业指导，可以从家庭儿科医生开始。

As the school year finishes, and we head into summer, uncertainty remains:

随着学年结束，我们进入夏季，不确定性依然存在：

"We don't have an end point. We don't know even what fall is going to look like.

“我们还没有到疫情结束点。我们甚至不知道秋天会是什么情况。

We're going to have to find more tools and skills for keeping up our spirits, for keeping up our resilience."

我们必须找到更多工具和技能来保持我们的精神，保持我们的韧性。”

One crucial way parents can help their kids?

家长能帮助孩子的一种关键方法是什么？

"I think parents really need to take care of themselves, too."

“我认为家长真的也需要照顾好自己。”

Thanks for listening for Scientific American's 60-second Science. I'm Susanne Bard.

谢谢大家收听科学美国人——60秒科学。我是苏珊娜·巴德。