The Health and Well-being of Youth

Key points by Ioanna Georgia Eskiadi

“The health and wellbeing of youth”

In this webinar, we discussed the ways young people and children’s mental health have been affected by COVID-19.

· COVID-19 has impacted the emotional health of youths.

· Youths have to manage anxiety, fears, and worries.

· Parents should try to respond to the needs and interests of their children.

· Youths are the most vulnerable group of the pandemic (in regards to their mental health).

· Family support and strengthening community are some ways of dealing with anxiety and stress.

· Realize, recognize, respond, and resist.

· Need for reliable responsive communication between parents and children.

· Every person responds differently in this situation.

· Some youths are unable to have access to online classes.

· In some countries, the pandemic increased the gender gap and privileges of boys over girls.

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected, in different ways, both children and youths, especially in regards to self-isolation, social distancing and quarantine measures, which have affected the mental health of youths. Families and communities play an important role in helping youths to manage the anxiety, fears, and worries. Business closures, social distancing, and quarantine measures have caused disruption in our daily lives that compels us now to pay more attention to mental health during this time of isolation and uncertainty. In order to keep our mental state healthy, we need mental activity, fulfilling relationships, and the ability to adapt to change and cope with stress. Youths are the most vulnerable to the disruptions and face the risk of being left behind in education, economic opportunity, and wellbeing. But the youth can effectively respond through public health promotion, volunteering, and innovation. During COVID-19.humanity has to deal with the change, uncertainty, threat, fear, loss, and disruptions. Youth are concerned about getting sick, passing to others, adjusting to new normals, supporting family, health, financial stress, the inability to connect, and shortages of supplies. Some strategies is of self-care include eating healthy, sleeping well, investing in extracurricular activities, accessing correct information, maintaining a schedule, and socializing.

In regards to parents, it’s important to improve the parent-child communication that helps children make sense of what they are experiencing or observing. Also, age-appropriate factual communication like pre-verbal infants and toddlers, preschoolers, young school age children, teens and young adults. Communication between parents and children needs to be open and transparent. Emotional communication is as important as informational communication. It’s important to acknowledge and validate feelings, recognize differences across family members, and provide realistic assurances. A key goal is to help kids not be alone with their worries. A parent has to take care of children by staying informed without getting overwhelmed and by managing media exposure. This can be achieved by helping too identify trusted sources, protect healthy curiosity and provide healthy choices. As our life is all about how people tackle problems, we get experience with major problems in our lives. It is difficult for youths to cope with lockdowns, social distancing, and quarantining while families are facing economic crises. Most of the minority youths are unable to have access to online classes and to important facilities for their daily life. Young people during the quarantine need education while in India people living in rural areas don’t have access to the internet. The COVID-19 pandemic has widened the gap between girls and boys, since boys have a better access to technology. Female population of youths are in more vulnerable conditions like child marriages that have been increased during the pandemic. Also, young women during the quarantine reported symptoms reflecting anxiety and depression.

Speakers:

Saba Hakeen is the Project Coordinator in the Center for Health and Gender Equality in Lahore, Pakistan.

Priyadarshini Mahara is in the National Media Co-in Charge and member of Indian Youth Congress from New Delhi, India.

Sunita Bishunki is the Secretary General of Dalit Youth Alliance in Kathmandu, Nepal.

Dr. Archana Basu is a Clinal Psychologist and Instructor of Mass General Hospital of Harvard Medical School and a Research Scientist at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in USA.