How to alleviate "school start anxiety"? Specially invited experts from Shanghai Science Popularization Lecture Hall present the "Opening Brocade"

Before and after the start of school, some students may experience tension, anxiety, and palpitations, commonly known as "start of school anxiety". How to deal with children's "start of school anxiety"? Meanwhile, in daily learning and life, hidden dangers that endanger children's lives are everywhere. How to protect children's physical and mental health and make them happy and healthy to go to school?

On the afternoon of September 9th, the 201st session of the Shanghai University of Science Popularization Lecture invited Dr. Sun Jinhua, a psychologist from the Affiliated Pediatric Hospital of Fudan University, and Dr. Gong Hairong, a doctor from the Department of Critical Care Medicine, to hold a special "parent teacher meeting" to provide guidance on mental health and prevent accidental injuries, and to cope with various troubles during the start of the school season. On site, Yuan Xuejia, the vice principal of Shanghai Weiyu Junior High School, was also invited to participate in the discussion, and together they presented the "opening bag" to help children adapt to the new semester's learning and life faster and better.

Psychological health issues have become a key concern for the whole society. On site, Sun Jinhua, with the theme of "Walking with Children: Paying Attention to the Mental Health of Adolescents", combined with his rich clinical experience, sorted out common psychological problems and manifestations of teenagers for the audience, and put forward suggestions for parents to identify and respond to their children's psychological problems as soon as possible.

"It is normal for children to experience anxiety and depression during the start of school, and parents do not need to be overly nervous. For most children, this state usually gradually disappears as they adapt to school learning and life." Sun Jinhua suggests that parents should first try not to be anxious. But if children eat and sleep differently than before, parents need to take it seriously. If you have serious emotional problems, you can seek help from professional psychological counseling institutions.

"Going to the hospital does not necessarily mean there is a problem. You can first go to a professional psychological counseling institution to assess the child's emotional and psychological state in a timely manner, and determine whether a doctor needs to intervene in the next step," said Sun Jinhua.

Gong Hairong, on the topic of "How to scientifically prevent child injuries", introduced the current situation of child injuries in China and proposed relevant suggestions for scientific prevention of child injuries. She mentioned that the foundation for preventing child injuries is monitoring. Currently, she and her team are collaborating with the China Center for Disease Control and Prevention to conduct a study on the child injury monitoring system. It is expected that by the end of 2025, 60 children's hospitals across the country will join the national child injury monitoring system.

"Falling injuries are the most common childhood injuries. The main part of a child's falling injury is the head, because of the unique nature of the child's body, which is heavy on the head and light on the feet. Next are the upper and lower limbs. Currently, cycling and roller skating have become popular sports for children, which reminds parents to wear protective equipment for their children," said Gong Hairong.

Regarding the psychological issues of children such as "school start anxiety", Gong Hairong believes that this requires the attention of the whole society, and schools, parents, and teachers should give children more spiritual attention. "Every child is a seed of a flower, and we believe that it is a flower with its own flowering period. Therefore, we should give children a relatively relaxed environment and believe that they will eventually usher in their own flowering period."

After the lecture, Yuan Xuejia discussed with two doctors at the school level how to jointly build a defense line and protect the physical and mental health and safety of teenagers and children.

Text/Part Photography: Yang Zhenying

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