It can be difficult to shield children from violent images on the internet and evening news.
Mass casualty events may be scary for kids to see in the media and can cause anxiety, stress and fear. Dr. Joe Austerman, doctor of osteopathic medicine for Cleveland Clinic Children, said regardless of the event, in these situations parents need to be protectors and provide a consistent message of safety.
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"Reassure them that they're safe, that this is an extremely rare phenomenon to occur and that people go about their daily lives all the time and that you'll continue to be their parent and protect them," he said.
Austerman recommends that parents try to limit the amount of violent media coverage young children are exposed to. If a child asks about a frightening or violent event, Austerman said its usually because theyre scared. He recommends asking a child what they know first and then letting them lead the conversation.
He said its important to find out what children are afraid of, what their worries are and to understand how theyre affected by it. When addressing concerns, he recommends using simplistic terms and warns not to overwhelm a child with too much information.
According to Austerman, its imperative to make children feel safe and to let them know that you wont let anything happen to them. He adds that this type of conversation can also serve as an opportunity to talk about family values. Typically what I tell parents is to say being angry and solving your anger through violence is not an okay thing to do and that is not our values and you try to tie that to the values and use that as a teachable moment, said Austerman.
Parents need not to try to force the discussion of a violent event upon a child, because it can be traumatic. If a child is not asking about it, he said theres no reason to introduce the topic and scare them.
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