When parents and the Court are working out new ways for everyone to live and spend time together, there are lots of different ways you might feel. You might feel happy sometimes, or a little bit sad, or even confused, or a bit frustrated – and that is okay. Every feeling you have is important. On this page, we're going to explore some of the common feelings kids can have when their parents are getting help from the Court. Hopefully knowing that lots of kids have these feelings will make talking about your feelings easier for you.
Talking about feelings
Talking to a trusted adult about your feelings can be helpful. This could be a parent, a grandparent, a teacher, or another adult who makes you feel safe, like a school counsellor or welfare officer. You might want to just talk to one trusted adult, or you might want to talk with different adults about different feelings you have.
You can also contact Kids Helpline by calling 1800 55 1800 or by WebChat Counselling and talk with a friendly adult who will listen and help you figure things out. If you are 12 or over, you can also talk to a friendly adult about your feelings at Headspace Online & phone support. You can do whatever feels best for you.
Feelings can be big, heavy and confusing. When you share how you're feeling, it's like letting some of the difficult feelings out, it can make them feel smaller and easier to manage. Talking can also help you understand what's happening, make your feelings feel less confusing and help you to feel supported and not alone.
Remember, you don't have to carry your feelings all by yourself, talking about feelings is a brave thing to do.
Feelings can be really complicated!
Sometimes you might feel lots of different things all at once, like being happy and a little bit sad at the same time. Other times, one feeling might stick around for a long time, making you wonder if it will ever go away. But here’s something important to remember: all feelings are temporary. Even when you're having big, difficult feelings, they will pass, and things will get better.
