Dana Gutkowski
Latest posts by Dana Gutkowski (see all)
- How can I be a good aunt? - May 19, 2021
- Aunt Quotes - March 19, 2021
- End Your Silence. Support Black Lives Matter - June 29, 2020
How Aunts Can Help
Sometimes it can feel nearly impossible for parents to get their point across to a teenager. It doesn’t matter if they have a signed and notarized letter from the head of the World Health Organization backing up their statements. If the information is coming from their parents’ lips, some teens are just not going to listen. Though it may not always be such a pressing issue, when it comes to talking to teens about the importance of social distancing during the COVID-19 Pandemic – it is!
Fortunately for us Aunts, this is where we can step in and play a huge supporting role in the family. It’s not that your teenage niece or nephew doesn’t want to do what’s best for society – it’s a matter of how and from whom the information is coming. Sometimes the words must come from someone other than their parent for them to get it, i.e. their Aunt.
It’s most likely that your teenage niece or nephew is talking to their friends and scrolling through their social media to gather information. This can be good or bad.
They could be educating themselves, but they could also be getting misinformed (adults too). Misinformation can spread just as quickly as the truth leading to people shrugging their shoulders and chalking it up to another news hype for ratings.
This could then lead to total disregard or complete panic – neither being the desired outcome, especially during this critical time.
So how can you broach this topic with your teens? How do you effectively communicate the importance of social distancing without overwhelming them? Lucky for you, I have some ideas.
Empower Them
This. is not about scaring young people into submission. It’s about bringing awareness and shining a light on our collective social responsibility. Younger people are being told that they aren’t at risk of getting sick, which is great, but not so great. It means that social distancing isn’t being taken seriously as it should be. That can lead to “No school? WOOHOO! Time to party!” Not so fast!
Sit them down and tell them that even though they aren’t at risk, your family and your community still need their help and participation. We can’t get through this without them!
Just because they’re not at risk doesn’t mean that they’re not important players in the global game. They might not be infected nor sick, but they can be carriers. Therefore, if they’re walking around with the virus, they can spread it to others which leads to a ripple effect of others being infected – and some of them might experience symptoms, severe or not.
Suggest Other Means of Socialization
Teenagers are very lucky to have technology on their side. They don’t need to ride their bikes to their friend’s house or wait for their parents to drive them somewhere to socialize. They have their phones!
Parents with strick guidelines for phone usage might want to let up a bit during this time (a conversation you can have separately with parents).
They can text, FaceTime, make their own TikTok challenge, Snapchat, or use whatever other apps are out there for entertainment. Challenge them to get creative. Teenagers love a good challenge.
They can also socialize with their younger relatives. Read this article which gives suggestions for creative ways to use FaceTIme.
Make It Personal: Talk About Their Elderly Family Members
Teens are hearing a lot about how the COVID-19 is effecting the elderly and not young adults. They may recognize themself as a young adult, but are forgetting about their parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, etc. Attach a name to who this could affect.
“If Grandma got this virus is could be really serious for her.” “Grandpa has emphysema, so he’s at high risk of serious infection”. You don’t want to scar them for life, but you do want them to think of the other people in their lives that they love and that this could bring serious harm to. And even if they don’t have family members with underlying health conditions, they will know someone who does – whether they’re aware of it or not.
Encourage Them To Be Leaders
Friends listen to their friends. If one sets the standard, there can be a positive ripple effect. If you get through to your teenage niece or nephew about the importance of social distancing, they can be an ambassador to their friends and peers.
Once they’re on your side, inspire them to promote positive peer pressure. Even if it means going against what everyone else is saying – being right always feels good. And in this case, they will be right!
Stress that this is temporary
No one knows how long this is going to last, but in the meantime, it is our reality. An open-ended ending is better than no ending at all in this case. They will eventually be able to go back to their teenage lives and carry on texting each other while in the same room, but for now, it’s best that they keep their distance, for their sake, for your sake, and for the sake of humanity. If it’s not urgent – it’s not necessary.
And once they do get to be social again, please make sure that they are being socially responsible and wearing a mask. I invite you to explore my face mask designs at my Enchanted Aunt store.
