DR. DONNA ROCKWELL

If the coronavirus pandemic has left you feeling a little foggy with your memory, you’re not alone. Some women may be feeling it more than others.

Experts have said the first step to creating a smooth transition for children to go back to school this year is to plan ahead and make sure you work together as a family.

“The brain can’t unknow something," Dr. Rockwell said. "We already know what happened last year, we’ve already experienced that. We can’t go back to before.”

DETROIT – The COVID-19 pandemic has shown everyone how easy it can be to feel overwhelmed, and that is especially true for parents. We hear so much about self care these days, but what do parents really need to get through this back to school season heading into fall? “One of the things I heard this summer again in preparation for fall was to on focus on the next 20 feet,” Hay said. If I’m having a bad day, then only think about that day. “Sometimes people will say pick one or two activities per child, but I’m really following the take one or two activities per family,” Hay said.

DETROIT – For many parents right now, the upcoming school year is a daunting thought. Whatever your situation is, pandemic or not, that first week can be tough for parents and kids. We need to have school time, we need to have break time, lunch time,” Rockwell said. She also said don’t forget to have fun the first week of school, be creative. Think about things you would normally do with your kids on a Saturday or a Sunday and make sure you include those during that first week of school too.

And if parents are feeling stressed, the children probably are too. More than half of all parents in a recent survey said their children are feeling anxious or depressed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Trust in the world and trust in our parents,” Rockwell said. “As adults we’re afraid and so how can our children do anything but absorb that feeling and also feel afraid?” Rockwell asked. So we’re exercising this muscle, the brain and we can’t do it without making friends with our brain when we’re very anxious,” Rockwell said.

DETROIT Theyre the words that can drive parents crazy: Im bored. But believe it or not, experts said a little boredom can be good for children. If your children dont have something to do, does that mean they are either fighting, whining or destroying something? But with children home 24/7, boredom isnt necessarily a bad thing. The first two weeks were whining every single day, Jeeyoung, a mother of three, said. Were really doing our children a disservice by doing everything for them and expecting that we should be doing that.Rockwell said parents notice it helps to build independence and sparks creativity.

DETROIT Even with coronavirus (COVID-19) restrictions lifting in Michigan, most of our everyday life has to be conducted from a distance. By nature, children are social. They usually love being with their friends and classmates, so its a challenge to help them be social while everyone is social distancing. We need to help cultivate that for our children when theyre not at school, Rockwell said. Its just really important that we keep the social connection current.Social distancing can be especially hard on children and teenagers who miss their friends.

The disappointment children feel because of these cancellations can be tough on them and their parents. “I think the first thing we need to understand is that disappointment is a part of life,” Rockwell said. READ: Ways to stay connected to loved ones during coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis“We used to think it was just normal to have a graduation party or a birthday party,” Rockwell said. “We need to listen and we don’t need to listen with the ears of, ‘How do I fix this.’ We need to listen with the ears of, ‘Is this person feeling heard?' Rockwell also said not to swell on past events that could lead to making your child feel depressed.

Children can be suffering from burnout too. A routine, she said, can be helpful with burnout, but it’s also important for children to know why things are different. "But if we’re able to cope with that stress, then our children will learn how to cope with the stress, they feel our burnout.”The first step to preventing burnout is practicing self-care. That’s how we need to look at self care.”Rockwell said since children learn from their parents, it’s important to be at your best. It’s a wonderful time for us to learn important life lessons.”

How to prevent burnout for you and your childrenPublished: May 27, 2020, 6:02 pmAs adults we might be feeling weary and burned out from all of these weeks doing everything from home -- but experts say we aren’t the only ones.

DETROIT – With the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, life as we knew it is gone, and with it a possible change in why we complain. Dr. Donna Rockwell, clinical psychologist, said when there is a major life change, we look at things differently. “Things like running late or not picking up something at the grocery store you wanted to or you forgot the dry cleaning, you know, little sort of petty things like that, lose their emphasis, and we refocus on what really matters," Rockwell said. “I think it’s really important in life that we do get the opportunity to re-perspectivise what is valuable to us, what’s meaningful to us and what matters. We could just go along our entire lives just doing errands and checking things off the list, but at the end of a lifetime that’s not what really matters.

COVID-19 has caused major life changesPublished: May 11, 2020, 5:50 pmWith the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, life as we knew it is gone, and with it a possible change in why we complain.

DETROIT – Throughout the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, many people are experiencing loss -- the loss of loved ones, of jobs and of life as we knew it. Our daily routines and the events we look forward to are gone, and it’s important to process how life has changed and the grief we feel as a result, according to clinical psychologist Dr. Donna Rockwell. “People in life expect to grieve for someone who has passed away or divorce or life change,” Rockwell said. “It’s really important to allow ourselves to grieve the life we knew before the pandemic and the life we know,” Rockwell said. “It’s important to understand thoughts are really not all that weighty,” Rockwell said.

READ: Michigan K-12 schools closed for rest of school year -- what we knowIt’s difficult news for children and parents. Even though this creates a tricky situation, experts believe parents can turn it into a positive experience. Do the best you can, but the children need to see you as a parent-teacher be confident and not be anxious or worried about whether you’re doing a good job or not. Let children know you will get through it together. “But I think it’s important to put that worry aside and come back to now and the present moment.

How parents can turn Michigan schools closing into positive experiencePublished: April 2, 2020, 11:53 pmMichigan families have a lot to process Thursday after Gov. Gretchen Whitmer closed school buildings for the rest of the year.