Anxiety begins to materialize, sleep and even growth can be affected by this confinement.
Confinement is a very stressful situation for anyone but when it comes to How it affects a family with one or more children with disabilities we are talking about a challenge. Perhaps the first few weeks can be a scary time but in The adaptation process brings out the best in each one of us because that's what it's all about survival.
When time expands, we begin to notice the true effects of a “lockdown.” Anxiety, stress, low mood, anger, boredom, confusion... As always, at the VICON Method we know the realities of our families well, so we are going to do a "radiography" first for become aware of what is happening, what is going to happen and what what can we do to remedy or prevent negative consequences.
- SLEEP: Changes in sleep patterns, lack of activity, changes in sleep patterns… Did you know that one in three children has sleep problems, and that most of these problems involve insomnia? Neuropediatricians They claim that sleeping poorly, little or changing the sleep rhythm can cause tiredness, drowsiness, irritability and mood swings in children but something that is less known is that Childhood sleep disorders can affect developmentThis is because at night, during sleep, a series of metabolic processes occur in our body and brain that regulate learning, cognitive development, and growth. Therefore, it is very important to maintain good routines, promote rest, and engage in good activity to facilitate the activation of the body and mind.
- SCHEDULE: A stable schedule and consistent hours of sleep each day. This doesn't mean waking your child up at the same time every day, but rather being consistent.constant at the approximate time of waking up and going to sleep, sleep the hours you need and don't end up with your sleep completely reversed.
- FEEDING: Nutrition is another aspect to monitor during confinement. These days, your child will be spending 24 hours at home and, like you, will often get bored. This boredom will lead them to seek something that will make them feel better, and all too often, it will be food. It's not just a question of the quantity of food, but of ensuring the quality of our food.
- ACTIVITY: When it comes to exercise, this is probably one of the most difficult areas to address when it comes to children with disabilities. When you're stuck at home, the biggest limitation is space. They can't run, they can barely jump, and the most they can do is move around the house. Eating too much and poorly, having poor quality sleep, and little exercise are a terrible combination for our children. One of the factors most closely related to growth is mechanical effect of physical activity that children usually do causes stress on the growth cartilage of the bones.
- GROWTH: Children tend to run and jump continuously, and the sudden, intermittent pressure this exerts on these bone growth lines is a great stimulus for the production of more cells and, therefore, growth. Spend time playing with your child the old-fashioned way. Suggest games that involve running, jumping, climbing, descending, overcoming obstacles... setting challenges for him to reach, climb... Nowadays, most mobile phones have apps that allow you to measure mobility, steps, and more. Find it on yours, set a goal, and start playing. This is very important because otherwise, you could lose muscle mass and increase your risk of sprains and coordination problems after quarantine.
- SUN: The lack of sun exposure caused by being confined to your home can lead to a lack of vitamin D, which serves many purposes in our bodies. Regarding bones, vitamin D is essential for good bone development and mineralization. Furthermore, vitamin D deficiency is one of the most common and least detected among children and adults in our country. Sunlight is necessary for our bodies to properly metabolize vitamin D, so don't let your child spend all day locked in their room, unable to see the sun. Find times to expose it to light, and try to get it to as much of the body surface as possible.. Bring it closer to the windows, balcony, or terrace of your home during times of greater sunlight intensity, with extreme care, of course.
- SCREENS: It's not time to ban mobile phones or consoles. Quite the opposite! In fact, Try to establish a routine with that too, a schedule for playing with the console or tablet. so that he can disconnect from the reality we are living and free his mind from worries and stress. Play with him and even talk to the parents of their friends and classmates to organize get-togethers for everyone. You can create groups and compete with parents against their children.
Overall, the children are handling the situation quite well. Problems will start to arise from now on, where many may be more irritable, with more stereotypical behaviors, with difficulties in sphincter control or even crying for no apparent reasonIt is essential to put some order in our lives and to give us security. Keep a good balance between relaxing and activating activities because now is the time to regulate all this anxiety that is manifesting from confinement. Human beings function better when they maintain a routine. If we keep our wake-up times, meal times, bedtimes, and if we exercise a little, it's important to differentiate weekdays from weekends. In the long term, children are most likely to there are no psychological after-effects of any kind, as long as we maintain the guidelines and follow the recommendations. If we let everything be chaos, if there are arguments every day, if we let everyone do whatever they want... Well, there will be problems, but just as they would in a situation where we could go out, exactly the same.
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