To say that every child and young person…

[KnowButNeedU2TellMeAsItIs]

That got through the pandemic, followed the rules, stayed indoors for long periods of time, endured isolation, online learning, ping pongs in and out of school, slow vaccination roll-out…

Should get a medal.

Our kids are amazing and gone through so much but not one bit of recognition.

No, I don't think we need to make any more of a fuss about it. Everyone needs to accept yes it was a shit time, harder for some than others, but ultimately a blip in our lifetime.

The children who endured the horrors of World War 2 didn't get much in the way of recognition, I believe

I don’t know about you but I’ve been paying off the debt from WWII all my working life as did my parents as well as living through a couple of recessions caused by conditions that I didn’t personally benefit from.

I’ve been ok tbh.

@whenwillthemadnessend I totally disagree.
Everyone had a tough time and no one is denying that some children struggled but they won't pay for it forever.
They are not scared by war or famine!
They stayed home and spent more time watching tv or being on line and being looked after.

I agree op, it was a very difficult and strange time for kids, world wide and probably has had a greater affect on their mental health than we know right now

Obviously this is meant in a metaphorical sense, I don't think we need to start worrying about where to source materials and craft medals. The point is that socialisation is imperative for child development and children had this suddenly taken away from them. Of course it was hard for everyone but in terms of longitudinal effects it will be young people who suffer most.

yanbu . Time passes more slowly for children so lockdown was literally longer for them. They also don’t have the experience or perspective to contend with the sudden severance of all their activities, social contact, contact with wider family, routines like going to school. Being trapped inside is hellish for many children. Things that seem trivial to an adult such as not being permitted to enter a playground for months on end can be traumatic for a young child. Whereas adults have more wherewithal to cope with the difficulties that are thrown at them even if they are causing really serious distress, loss, deterioration of health etc.

My children got recognition from me and their teachers tell them all the time how amazing they were through the whole thing and how proud they are of them all.
I honestly don't know any kids with social anxiety or mental health problems resulting from the pandemic. All my kids friends and everyone I know has just gone back to normal life.

I agree. Shit happens and life goes on, I’m all for encouraging resilience etc. but isn’t coming through the other side the ‘reward’ if there has to be one?

Don’t get me wrong, a lot of our plans these days are influenced by the fact so much was restricted for so long but I don’t particularly feel the need to reward my dd. It feels really odd to contemplate.

Rewarding something usually means a person has made a choice at some point, I don’t think any child has really had much choice over the pandemic.

Slow vaccination roll out? Really?

You could make your kids medals out of tin foil and have a presentation in your living room if you like.

I rather nhs or schools got extra money.

I get the sentiment OP but I can’t see any kids appreciating a medal

No, they don't. My dcs had the life of Riley. Chatted with mates on line, didn't lift a finger and one of them even got on with schoolwork. They moaned about having to go on runs and walks with me every day which was hardly a traum in the grand scheme of things.

I'd rather the impact on children was acknowledged with improved access to SALT, a functioning CAHMS, better education funding etc than a medal to shove in the drawer and be a reminder of unpleasant times.

Children have been disproportionately affected by the rules, for instance when adults were allowed to exercise with another person, 5-11ish year olds were prohibited from that right to interact beyond their household because it was illegal to meet a peer and be supervised. Children who did not have parents of appropriately worthy occupation to qualify for a school place had to go multiple months twice without legally being able to meet their classmates/ friends. They were also disproportionately affected by the "rule of 6" that banned pairs of families from meeting in parks, when it was legal to meet 5 people from other households in the pub.

At least the data is now showing the cohort toll on young people and those who were mute about the obvious consequences during 2020/21 are now finally seeing it. A medal is no compensation though.

The OP didn't mean a literal medal.

Kids lost years of their childhood and education but people lost loved ones. Everyone went through a lot of things during that time. Everyone deserves recognition for their sacrifices.

Too many people didn't follow the rules which makes those who did the bare minimum seem like saints.

😁😁😁
With bells on please!

@BogRollBOGOF not if it was a cousin or you were in a bubble

Totally agree. Kids were always the last thought of throughout the pandemic, at least that’s how it felt from my perspective with my two small children at home. Yes they may have been “resilient” and coped with it but that doesn’t mean it didn’t do them any harm. The benefits of locking younger children down seemed to be negligible anyway which made it all the more galling.
I don’t think they need a medal as such, but a simple “thank you” directly aimed at them wouldn’t have gone amiss.

I think some kids actually benefitted from the lockdown.
I work with children with attachment disorders and right at the start I thought how much some would.benefit from time with their parents and the easing of the pressures of school. I was right and many families have really improved relationships and family lives.
My own daughter also was one who benefitted from more time at home and with us, she is much more confident and secure than she was.
I know many have suffered as well but for some it had some benefits.

Sorry but YABU! I am actually sick and tired of people banging on about how hard children had it. Every single person had a hard time over the global pandemic. Most people at some stage "followed the rules, stayed indoors for long periods of time, endured isolation, online learning / working, ping pongs in and out of school / work, slow vaccination roll-out…" I'm a teacher and we've done more this year for our students to let them have fun and make memories after a shit few years. Let's move on from it now!

If recognition is what youre after then I'd like to take this opportunity to mention Eris Apple and her wonderful patches. Getting a lockdown birthday badge for her camp blanket helped dd feel better when her birthday party got cancelled.

It was a global pandemic. It was hard for everyone all over the world, because it was essentially a form of "natural disaster". Honestly I'm really really sick of people talking about how hard it was for children. All I fucking heard throughout the pandemic was how hard it was for children so I don't think we can say kids were not thought of. Fucking constant. There are lots of people who for many reasons will have found the pandemic very hard, and many people who have had to deal with harder situations. All we can do is accept and move on at this stage

My DS seemed ok at the time. Now, I feel I can see that it has had an adverse effect on him, but I cant see how a medal would help him. And I think others suffered far more than him

Exactly, In fact everyone I know got through it fine. It was in everyone's best interest to get through it. Not to say it was hard for many, many people. But it is life and my reward is being able to get through the tough time. Children are the most resilient and everyone I know just got back into normal life again.