| Baby sickness - is always a hard trial for | | | | emotions and forget about affirmation: |
| family, and if the matter concerns baby's | | | | "Hospital - pain, fear, danger". Replace it |
| hospitalization, then you can become | | | | by "Hospital - help, relieve, recovery". You |
| panic-stricken only at the thought of the | | | | confidence and peace of mind will be passed |
| fact that a baby will be estranged from his | | | | to your daughter and son. Talk to your child |
| family, painful procedures expect him, and | | | | about coming hospitalization softly-softly. |
| strangers will surround him. | | | | You can explain to schoolchild, that sickness |
| | | | is not a catastrophe, but a peculiar exam for |
| Because of hospitalization, a baby can get | | | | courage and firmness. Tell your child that |
| the whole complex of serious psychological | | | | you will be thinking of him constantly and |
| problems, caused by sickness, isolation from | | | | you're always ready to help him. Think and |
| home and conditions of hospital. Even adult | | | | discuss ways of your contacts. |
| person experiences stress, when he needs to | | | | |
| apply to a doctor and moreover, while | | | | During separation avoid touching scenes, |
| necessity of long staying in hospital. | | | | restrain excessive emotions. Try to behave |
| Needless to say about baby's stress! Strange | | | | the way, so that a baby would treat hospital |
| atmosphere, strange people, new, constantly | | | | not as punishment, but as a place, where he |
| renewed children collective, forced | | | | will be helped to recover sooner and return |
| separation from parents, fear of medical | | | | to usual life. Form positive attitude, both |
| procedures - all this is quite enough for | | | | to improvement of health and doctors' work. |
| psychological discomfort. And all these | | | | Explain your child an objective necessity of |
| factors accompany symptoms of disease. | | | | medical assistance. |
| | | | |
| However, you shouldn't dramatize situation. | | | | Don't persuade him that he is guilty of his |
| Of course, disease and necessity of | | | | sickness, trauma etc. himself. By doing this, |
| hospitalization - are traumatizing factors. | | | | you will increase sense of guilt and fear, |
| But for majority of children staying at | | | | which can cause undesirable psychological |
| hospital can become an important stage in | | | | complications. Of course, there're |
| formation of personality, bring lots of new | | | | situations, when it is important to discuss |
| impressions and knowledge, and give | | | | wrong behavior of a child, which caused |
| possibility to try themselves in difficult | | | | disease. But it is also very important that |
| life circumstances. This experience will be | | | | a result of your conversation would be not a |
| useful in further life of a child. | | | | sense of guilt, but understanding of cause |
| | | | and effect connection between wring behavior |
| Processes of adaptation are individual for | | | | and disease. |
| each child. This depends on many reasons: | | | | |
| whether he had diseases earlier, stage of | | | | Discuss schedule of visiting a child with |
| disease, is he staying at hospital for the | | | | relatives for sure, to avoid situations, when |
| first time or not, baby's age, whether he was | | | | there're several visits per one day and no |
| separated from his family before etc. Often | | | | visits at all other day. This is very |
| everything passes quite smoothly, due to | | | | important, as excess of visitors can lead to |
| presence of inner reserves of a baby and | | | | emotional overloads of a sick baby, and their |
| correct behavior of parents. | | | | absence - to increase of longing for home and |
| | | | relatives. |
| It's quite normal, if period of adaptation at | | | | |
| hospital lasts during 3-5 days. There're no | | | | Try not to hung up on topic of disease and |
| reasons for anxiety, if a baby is rather | | | | treatment. Life goes on. Ask your child about |
| careless during first days of | | | | his new friends, news, what he does in spare |
| hospitalization, asks to take him home, gets | | | | time. Keep all your doubts concerning |
| into contact with coevals not at once. Excess | | | | effectiveness of treatment inside of you. |
| care and parental inclination for dramatizing | | | | Don't overload patient with your doubts and |
| situation can only damage. On the other hand, | | | | fears. As medicine, which you doubt, will not |
| you shouldn't leave a baby alone with his | | | | help, as doctor, whom you don't trust, won't |
| problems. He shouldn't feel abandoned and | | | | be able to help. Try to avoid unpleasant |
| lonely. | | | | topics, wait a little with information about |
| | | | bad news: sick baby need not to know that his |
| Quite often parents of sick children need | | | | favorite doggie eats bad or that cat ate |
| more psychological help, then children | | | | hamster. While talking to a baby, pay |
| themselves, as it is their correct behavior | | | | attention to positive moments of staying at |
| that influences a baby's mood for recovery. | | | | hospital. Think about things you can |
| | | | compliment him for: he bears procedures with |
| Here're several recommendations of experts. | | | | fortitude, doesn't play about, could make |
| Never frighten your baby with hospital. Don't | | | | friends with somebody, drew a good picture |
| create future problems, as there's hardly any | | | | etc. |
| baby, who hasn't been at hospital for his | | | | |
| life. During conversations with other people | | | | Unfilled spare time increases feeling of |
| avoid such phrases, like: "There doctors | | | | loneliness, longing for home. So you should |
| hardly understand something, I wish only they | | | | definitely worry about things your child |
| don't harm my child" etc. | | | | should do. Bring him an interesting book, |
| | | | meccano, some new game, paints, crayons etc. |
| In case of baby hospitalization do your best | | | | Bring a toy for a small baby surely. You can |
| to reduce stress and melancholy because of | | | | tell that a new "friend" came to him |
| coming separation from home and parents. | | | | specially to protect him at nights (if a baby |
| Adults themselves should be confident in | | | | is predisposed to night fears). It will be |
| future, calm and wise, so that a baby would | | | | very good, if you bring him a toy bear, |
| treat staying at hospital calmly. If | | | | elephant, lion, tiger, i.e. any big animal, |
| hospitalization is planned and you have at | | | | which will be able to personify power and |
| least 1-2 days for preparation, involve baby | | | | protection (size of toy is not important). |
| in preparations, as if he would be going to | | | | |
| health centre or camp. | | | | After discharge talk to your baby about time |
| | | | he spent at hospital. Ask him about things he |
| Try to dispose your baby to optimism. | | | | learned to do, what he understood about |
| Children have great intuition, and it's | | | | himself and his relations with other people, |
| almost impossible to persuade them in things, | | | | help him to realize value of experience he |
| which you don't believe yourself in. So, | | | | gained. |
| first of all you should analyze your own | | | | |