Our world has changed dramatically over the last 5 years, and my thought go to how can we better prepare and protect our children, one of our most vulnerable populations?

If we teach children to know their feelings, that is, to learn to identify them, talk about them and express them in words, we are helping them to sort out their thoughts and feelings, they will feel more supported, cared about and not alone.  When children grow up in an environment without emotional connections, or weak connections, they are alone to deal with big feelings and some are very frightening, especially when no one is there to de-construct them and then nurture them afterward.  If this happens, a child can grow up very alone, confused, depressed, angry and suicidal.

We must emphasize the importance of emotional health, of teaching children about feelings and how to express them.  Families usually can do this but not all families or parents are capable, some parents themselves have grown up in a home with no emotion except maybe sadness and anger, or depression.  These parents then have a very difficult time providing the emotional support that their own children need, and unless these parents can realize their own difficulties and find help, their children will suffer and society as well.