Encouraging News, For Once!

January 16, 2021

A roundup of new guidance and stories from NYT Parenting.

Golden Cosmos

Tanzina Vega, a journalist who wrote a beautiful piece for us early on in the pandemic about what it was like to quarantine with a newborn alone, hit on something for many when she tweeted: “Lots of people — including me — are hitting what I’m calling the pandemic wall this week. The burnout from working nonstop, no break from news, child care and isolation is hard.”

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I’m certainly relating to Tanzina pretty hard right now. And I’m here to bring you some not totally horrible news, which should at least help you to look toward the future, and perhaps stop panicking in the present.

First, we have some mildly comforting reporting from Apoorva Mandavilli about what the new, more contagious variant of Covid-19 means for in-person schooling. Research from Public Health England showed that “young children were about half as likely as adults to transmit the variant to others.” It still is more contagious, but the measures we should already be using — like physical distancing, universal masking and good ventilation — also work well for this variant. Apoorva had another piece this week about the future of Covid-19: After adult immunity is widespread, researchers predict that the virus will become just another annoying childhood infection.

Next, Virginia Sole-Smith explains how to handle pandemic weight gain in children. In her piece, Virginia writes, “if you think that your child’s body is bigger than it might otherwise be right now, it’s important to view that change as something to be curious about, rather than as a problem to solve.” It’s normal for children’s bodies to change frequently, especially before and during puberty. Instead of obsessing over numbers on a scale, it’s important for families to focus on mental health and exercise.

Also new this week: What to do if you think your kid needs a Covid test, how to deal with the emotional aftermath of miscarriage when you are pregnant again, and a piece about the damage that so-called “tough love” residential treatment centers can have on teens.

Thanks for reading.

— Jessica Grose, lead editor, NYT Parenting

THIS WEEK IN NYT PARENTING

Martin Rickett/PAMPC, via Associated Press

What Does a More Contagious Virus Mean for Schools?

The coronavirus variant discovered in Britain is more easily spread among children, as it is among adults. Current safeguards should protect schools, experts said, but only if strictly enforced.

By Apoorva Mandavilli

Carlo Allegri/Reuters

The Future of the Coronavirus? An Annoying Childhood Infection

Once immunity is widespread in adults, the virus rampaging across the world will come to resemble the common cold, scientists predict.

By Apoorva Mandavilli

Janice Chang

Should You Worry About Your Kid’s Pandemic Weight Gain?

Think of body changes as something to be curious about, not a problem to be solved.

By Virginia Sole-Smith

Sonia Pulido

So You Think Your Kid Needs a Covid Test

Here’s everything you need to know about when to get it and what to expect.

By Christina Caron

Bianca Bagnarelli

What to Expect When You’re Expecting the Worst

People who have lost pregnancies often emotionally distance themselves when they become pregnant again. But is that healthy?

By Emily P.G. Erickson

via Kenneth R. Rosen

Voices

When I Was Labeled a ‘Troubled’ Teen, I Obliged

I was sent to three “tough love” programs meant to redirect me. Trying to run away from one made me feel that I had no choice but to become what I had been told I was.

By Kenneth R. Rosen

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Tiny Victories

Parenting can be a grind. Let’s celebrate the tiny victories.

I got my 3-year-old daughter to finally enjoy having her hair washed by calling the shampoo “hair bubbles!” Instead of screaming and trying to escape, she now happily lathers her own hair, laughs when I wash it out, and then washes her doll’s hair too!— Samantha Olmstead, Huntsville, Ontario

If you want a chance to get your Tiny Victory published, find us on Instagram @NYTparenting and use the hashtag #tinyvictories; email us; or enter your Tiny Victory at the bottom of this page. Include your full name and location. Tiny Victories may be edited for clarity and style. Your name, location and comments may be published, but your contact information will not. By submitting to us, you agree that you have read, understand and accept the Reader Submission Terms in relation to all of the content and other information you send to us.

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