Relaxation
Looking After Yourself!
A child's visit or stay in hospital can be a very worrying time for parents and families. If you are having or have had such an experience, you may have gone through a period of stress and anxiety, leaving you tired and drained of energy. To cope with such a situation it is important to take some time out for yourself, to relax, unwind and recharge your batteries. Doing this will also benefit your sick child, as you will be better able to comfort and reassure him or her if you are rested.
It is essential to take regular breaks.
Telling your child you are taking a break, and when you will be back, will reassure him or her.
Suggestions:
- Participate in the ward parents' groups
- Take a break and go for a cup of coffee
- Read a relaxing book
- Have a shower and nap
- Take a trip into town
- Go to the cinema
- Visit a friend
To help reduce the stress and anxiety of having a child in hospital, make sure that you ask your relations and friends to help. Speak to the social worker in the hospital who will be able to inform you of what supports are available for you and your family.
'No, you are not alone!'… you may be familiar with this statement, and we hope that you believe it even if the experience of having a sick child can, at times, make you feel very isolated. You can speak to the psychologist and to the ward staff about whatever is bothering you.
Also, talking to parents on the ward will help you get to know how things work.
The support of your family and the medical team is essential but sometimes it is just not enough. The experience can be traumatic and many parents each year look for extra support.
Where can you find the right support group?
These very professional groups were especially created, mainly by parents, to provide full and comprehensive support to people like you. They are very inclusive and easy to approach.
For a list of support groups, please click on the link to have a look at CHI's support groups' page.
If you are going to Our Lady's Children's Hospital Crumlin with your child, you can ask for help and advice at their Social Work Department: http://www.olhsc.ie/ForParents/Yourchildsstayinhospital/SocialWorkDepartment/
The Children's University Hospital in Temple Street, Dublin, also has a Social Work Department: http://www.cuh.ie/parent_child/index.html#3
Ask For Help!
Having a child in hospital is difficult for all the family. Family routines have to be reorganised around support for your child who is sick. It might be necessary to ask friends and family to help out - to prepare a meal, collect children from school or preschool, do some laundry, stay with your sick child while you take a break. Generally friends and family are happy to help and only have to be asked.
Words of Wisdom
"It may be reassuring to prepare a going-home bag with your child before he or she goes into hospital. This will help to reinforce the fact that, for most children, the stay is only temporary," Pauline Wells, Going into Hospital.
"Humor is the great thing, the saving thing. The minute it crops up, all our irritations and resentments slip away and a sunny spirit takes their place," Mark Twain.
"By playing hospitals, children get to grips with what is happening to them, as though playing through some events gives them mastery over it," Richard Landsdown, More Than Sympathy-The Everyday Needs of Sick and Handicapped Children and Families.
"No matter how trivial the cause, any in-patient admission and many out-patient appointments bring anxiety and uncertainty in their train," Richard Lansdown.
"Parents often have a fear of not lasting out for the child's sake; sometimes it is helpful for them to sit down quietly and go over what has happened, to acknowledge how hard it has been and to recognize that they have survived until now and can survive longer," Penny Cook, Supporting Sick Children.
