Supporting your child during uncertain times

Last updated: November 9, 2026

The world we live in and events around us have a direct impact on our mental health and well-being. As Ontario families navigate challenging times and uncertainty, we’d like to share a few gentle prompts to support both you and your child.

Validate feelings 

Two things can be true at once – you can listen to and validate your child’s fears, while also helping them to feel safe. Our first response when a child expresses fear is often to reassure them that everything will be fine, but when we do this, we sometimes skip over the important step of listening and truly hearing them and their concerns. Helping your child feel seen, understood and heard is powerful. 

Validation can look like: 

 “that must have been scary to read” or 

“it makes sense that you are feeling worried right now”.  

You can also foster safety and hope by adding: 

“that must have been scary to read AND you are safe.  Let’s notice together some things that remind us we are safe right now” or 

“it makes sense that you are feeling worried AND let’s think about what we can do today to help.”  

Practice calm together 

It’s helpful to acknowledge that we can’t always control the circumstances around us, but we can control how we respond. Help your child to approach challenges that may come their way from a place of calm. You can use this circular breathing exercise as a starting place. Practice together and often. 

Remind them of their power  

Sometimes young people (and adults) think that there is nothing they can do to help in situations that feel big, or beyond their control. When this happens, they may ignore the issue, push down their feelings, and distract themselves with other things. This can be a helpful way to cope in some situations. But even when a problem feels overwhelming, small actions matter. You can help your child recognize that their small acts of kindness can make someone feel brighter and more optimistic. Remind your child that their daily actions, however small, have an impact.  Consider making a list together of things they already do, and can do, to influence change. For example, recycling and reusing helps care for the environment, contributing clothing or food to local services supports families in their community. 

Help them to stay informed, but not overwhelmed 

Your child is inevitably going to consume information about events around them, so it’s helpful to work with them to better understand where to seek information and when to set limits on what they consume. Even balanced media can become overwhelming with persistent and repeated coverage; you can help them choose sources wisely. Help your child think critically about what they read, see, and what shows up on their social media feeds. Talking as a family about what they are reading and seeing is important.  

Support your child with recognizing when they need a break from media.  Experiencing excessive worries and fears after taking in information can signal the need for a break. Share what you are noticing and help them to reflect on the thoughts, feelings and behaviours that are coming up for them.  

Learn more about how to help your child choose media sources  

Encourage curiosity 

It’s helpful for young adults to understand that there are many perspectives on events and issues. Encouraging our children to ask questions and be curious is important. Take time together to learn about factors involved, historical and present-day, that surround events. Avoid simplistic explanations and solutions.  Complex issues usually have multiple causes and require many people, perspectives, and approaches to move towards good outcomes.   

Practice joy 

During stressful times it’s easy to lose sight of joy. Research suggests that joy is a distinct and important emotion that contributes to well-being. Joy is rooted in connection, meaning, love and belonging, and can be experienced even during times of uncertainty or adversity. Creating opportunities for shared joy in your family can help strengthen relationships, foster resilience and support mental health.  

Here are some tips for reconnecting with joy at home: 

• Make time for unstructured play 
• Share laughter together 
• Simple everyday routines like preparing meals together, getting outside for walks 
• Engage in hobbies that your child loves 
• Enjoy music together 

And lastly, but not least, do what you can to take care of yourself also during these stressful times. Many of the tips above for supporting your child apply to you as well. Know that your presence and your ongoing care and support make a huge difference in how your child copes with stress and uncertainty.  

Consider checking out Caring for yourself while caring for others for tips on self-compassion and self-care.