How do you prepare your children for a hurricane approaching

[Pebbles]

Well thats a way to look at it when it comes to kids

Yes it is All parents probably think of it as their "Masterpiece work in Progress" *hugs*

[knotimpaired]

Thanks Pebbles.

You said it all.

[banshee]

My 15 yr old daughter is terrified of storms, always has been and I dont know where she gets it. I absolutely love storms and had I not had her I'd be a storm chaser.

I have though, over the years, reduced her reaction to storms. The only way I knew to calm her was to A- be calm myself and give her my undivided attention during even the smallest thunderboomers and B- get her to watch storms with me to try and explain to her as they were going over what they were doing.

I'm not a knowledgable weather person by any means but after living in Miami, Cape Coral and then NC, over the years I learned to watch the skies.

The number one ? she has is "Mom, why dont storms bother you?" My answer is always "I dont worry about what I cant control and because I 'pert near died in the Gulf one year during a storm." Long story but the entire family almost died one year out fishing. The upside to the story, we made it home and I caught a small shark.

Over the past 15 years I've educated her and in the event a hurricane comes our way we prepare for it same as we prepare for an ice storm. Water, batteries, canned goods, candles, etc, etc, etc. When summer boomers come through, she knows the drill, unplug the expensive stuff, TV, puter, etc, get out the candles and portable tv, down come the cards & games and in the event we lose power everybody knows Bojanges down the street somehow always has power so we go eat and make a friend.

[Mac]

I don't know how many of us here have young children but I was just wondering how do you prepare them for an approaching hurricane to your area.

Do you tell them what is going on?

Do you just tell them that a big storm is coming but everything will be okay?

Do you just keep them in the dark if possible?

Here is how I prepare my children. I say, "Son, this is a ladder and this is an anometer. I want you to use the ladder to climb on the roof, hold the anometer above your head, and await further instructions."

Okay, okay. Just joking.

All joking aside, I work in a pediatric critical care unit. So I have a fair amount of experience bracing children for bad--or potentially bad--news.

What you want to do is to reassure your children, without causing them to become over-anxious and without lying to them. Research has shown that most of a child's anxiety comes from NOT KNOWING what to expect. So prepare them for what they can expect, but try not to be too sensationalistic about it.

You might say something like, "There is a big storm coming, and it's likely to bring lots of wind and rain. It will probably be the biggest storm you've ever seen. But you don't need to be afraid. We're all going to huddle together in the house during the storm, and we're well prepared for it. We may lost electricity, but I made sure we have flashlights so we can see and we have a radio that runs on batteries so we can hear the news about what is happening outside. We have lots of extra food and water, and we've done everything we can to make the house as safe as possible."

Then here's probably THE most important part. Ask them:

"DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT WHAT WE JUST TALKED ABOUT?"

Don't ASSUME you've answered all of your children's questions. Find out what concerns you didn't address, and discuss them. Again, be honest but not too sensationalistic. If children feel like you weren't honest, you may find yourself hard pressed to regain their trust. For example, we don't tell a child that it won't hurt when we stick a needle in their spinal column to withdraw cerebral spinal fluid. We say, "This is going to hurt a little bit--kind of like a bee sting. But it's only going to sting for just a second, and it's really important that you follow our instructions carefully so we only have to do this once."

I think you get the idea. Be honest with your kids. Try to make sure you've given them enough information so they aren't surprised by anything that happens. But don't give them more information than you really need to, and don't try to be too sensationalistic about the information you do give them. Don't tell them about potential destruction. Whatever happens will happen, and telling them these kinds of things will only increase their anxiety.

[baygirl_1]

usually, they don't really talk about it. they may ask a question here or there (and of course you need to answer it truthfully, though not to a point of frightening them). most of the times, i see their stress expressed in their behavior: becoming more agressive with their toys or each other. when that happens, it's time to do something fun together (play a board game or card game, etc) to try to redirect their energy, if at all possible. above all, they pick up on your reactions, moods, etc. keep reassuring them things will be okay and, though the normal routine has been disrupted, try to keep some bit of normalcy there (e.g. meal times, bed times). that's how my parents handled things with us when we were kids and, i figure, it seemed to work well enough.