Tips To Aid The Youngest Victims

The hurricane victims most in need of help, after the ill and the injured, are the children.

Child psychologist Robin Goodman told The Early Show co-anchor Hannah Storm about the kind of help that children in the hurricane stricken areas will need and had some tips for parents elsewhere on how to deal with children's questions about the disaster.

Children from communities of the hard-hit Gulf Coast have already weathered the trauma of evacuation or weathering the hurricane and subsequent flooding. Now, they are faced with the trauma of homelessness.

Here are some things that will help those children cope with their sadness and fears:

• Establish a routine. A lot of the kids from New Orleans are going to be going into schools in Texas. They are trying to work them into the school system, and that is going to be helpful. Structured routine brings comfort to kids and gives them a sense of control.
• Model good behavior. It's typical for kids to have a lot of anger and irritability; that's how they express their fear. They see the lawlessness that is going on in areas of New Orleans so they need to see positive role models as well. Parents should make sure they are exhibiting good behavior and that they emphasize that the same rules — no spitting, no bad language — still apply. Parents need to find ways to talk about how upset they are and how awful things are. If a child broke his arm, you would say, "It's gotta hurt. Let's figure out what we can do. In the meantime, every day it will get better."
• Instill a sense of hope. Understand their questions and what they are really upset and worried about, and try to show them that as bad as things are, they will get better and, eventually, be back to normal.
• Limit their exposure to the media. Even as an adult, it's hard to get past all these pictures we are seeing. Kids shouldn't be watching it. Young children will think it's happening all over again and become scared. Older kids are overwhelmed. It doesn't help them in terms of getting back to normality. Find routines that make them feel better and help them develop skills that will help them cope.

Children who live elsewhere should be kept away from most media coverage of the event for the same reasons. Parents should also help these children talk about their fears and sadness and try to instill a sense of hope, a conviction that things will get better.