Parental unemployment affects children too
If you have lost your job, it is something that affects your family, your children too! Find out how it affects them.
If a parent becomes unemployed, children may worry. Employment is necessary to get money and money is essential to survive in this society. Losing a job is a situation that affects the whole family … so everyone must support each other and to do so, you have to talk to the children about what happened.
While it’s tempting to keep this a secret to prevent kids from worrying or stressing out, they may feel like something is wrong even if you don’t tell them. They are likely to be even more upset when they find out that their parents (to whom they must always tell the truth and have to trust) have been keeping a secret from them, they can imagine worst-case scenarios if what is happening is not talked about.
So you will have to take a deep breath and have a family reunion to talk about what is going on and what it means to the family. Even if you are scared, frustrated, or stressed, remember that you don’t need to have all the answers when you talk to your children. Instead, just explain what you know so far.
Be prepared for the conversation, to calm your children and to help them understand how stressful this is but that you will not sit idly by. Losing a job affects the whole family but it is the most important time to support each other.
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HOW UNEMPLOYMENT AFFECTS
When you are not working, you are in search or things are somewhat uncertain for a while, it is likely that your children feel some stress, but everything will return to normal when they see that you can work again. If you are out of work for a long time, your unemployment could affect your child’s overall well-being. Studies show that parental unemployment can reduce children’s happiness (even children’s grades can drop if parents lose their jobs because they are also affected by stress).
There are some ways unemployment affects children , here are some of them:
- Parents’ stress is passed on to their children. When parents are stressed, loss of income or difficulty finding work also stresses their children.
- Low income affects the daily life of children. A family’s standard of living can decline, which could prevent a child from enjoying the same activities and privileges as before.
- Job loss triggers other stressful events. When families have to move to a new city or stop sending children to extracurricular activities , children’s daily lives can be negatively affected.
- Children worry about the future. Older children who understand a little about money and bills may feel anxious that their family will be living in poverty or homeless
- Children can become targets of bullies when a parent is unemployed. Unemployment can lead to teasing and bullying from other children.
When you understand how unemployment affects children, you can reduce the cost it takes on their lives. Talking to children about job losses and finding ways to help them cope could be critical in helping them cope with stress in a healthy way.
Don’t think that if you lose your job it only affects you. In your family you are a team and what affects one affects everyone. You are all one and therefore, these things are necessary to face them together, with love and respect. Putting on your part you are sure that you will find a way out for the good of your family.
Dr. Tabriella Perivolaris, Sara's mother and fan of fashion, beauty, motherhood, among others, about the female universe. Since 2018 she has been working as a copywriter, always bringing to her articles a little of her experience and experience as a mother and woman.