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Tips for Parents
Talk about what is going on:
- Provide your children with age-appropriate and accurate information
about cancer
- Help your children to put their feelings into words
- REPEATEDLY tell your children that cancer is not contagious and that
they did not do anything to cause the cancer
Prepare and involve your children:
- Prepare your children for changes in the family, in the parent, in
the family schedule
- Provide your children with opportunities to be involved with the sick
parent by helping out and through hospital visits
- GRADUALLY prepare your child if death becomes inevitable: children
need to have a chance to say goodbye and to be involved in death rituals
Reassure your children:
- Provide your children with a sense of normalcy, and as much continuity
as possible
- Give your children physical contact and comfort--hugs are more important
than ever
- Give your children hope and encouragement that life will one day be
better and more enjoyable
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