Meg T on 01 April 2021
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Q. How has your children’s mental health been impacted by the pandemic?
I am a lone parent to 3 sons, two are now adults and have left home and my youngest aged 16 lives with me. My son has had issues with anxiety and low mood since year five at school when he became increasingly ostracised and bullied by his peers. So his mental health has always because been a major concern for me. We are fortunate to have had the assistance of the child and adolescent mental health service (CAMHS) since year seven when he started at secondary school. That's went on until July last year when it was deemed he was in a position not to need therapy any more, but remained under the care of CAMHS. However we had need of CAMHS again in October as his mental health deteriorated again necessitating intervention from the crisis team. Whilst the pandemic itself has not been the cause of his anxiety and low mood over the years it has exacerbated his sense of isolation and loneliness. Because of bullying I now home educate him and have been doing so for over a year now. Before the pandemic we were able to get out and about much more and participate in home education activities with other home Ed families. But all of his activities being outdoor based were suspended, meaning finding activities he enjoyed doing a home became increasingly difficult. Isolation has become a big issue because he can't ride a bike or steer a canal boat in an online Zoom meeting. Furthermore, me being disabled and potentially vulnerable to Covid infection has proved to be a major source of stress before the vaccination started to roll out because he doesn't have contact with his father any more, his eldest brother who is effectively his next of kin is based in Scotland as he works for the RAF and so he has been terrified that I will catch it and die and there will be no one to look after him when he needs support the most.
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