Frame It in a Way Children Can Understand: An Interview With LeeAnn Finnegan
Having been involved with early intervention as a service coordinator, developmental therapist, and a parent, LeeAnn Finnegan knows first-hand the struggles that parents of young children with disabilities have faced throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. She says, ”I feel like we are at a point now where all our kids from birth to three don’t remember a time before COVID-19. So, they are really struggling with those social skills and interactions with other people as this is not just something we know inherently. It is a developmental skill we have to learn.” She emphasizes the importance of keeping open communication surrounding mental health and framing both mental health and the realities of pandemic life in a way that children can understand it. Speaking from both her personal and professional experience, LeeAnn stresses the necessity of parents prioritizing their own mental health: “Parents can nurture their children’s mental health by nurturing their own.” She also shares resources that can help caregivers address developmental concerns in their children as well as supporting their own mental health needs. Her hope is that children have developed resiliency during the COVID-19 pandemic that will help them tackle anything that comes their way throughout their lives.
Resources
- Baby Navigator. (2021). Home. https://babynavigator.com/
- Big Little Feelings [@biglittlefeelings]. (n.d.). Posts [Instagram page]. Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/biglittlefeelings
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022). Early intervention contact information by state. https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/actearly/parents/state-text.html
- Crisis Text Line. (2022). Home. https://www.crisistextline.org/
- Division for Early Childhood. (2022). Home. https://www.dec-sped.org/
About the Interviewee
LeeAnn Finnegan, BA, has worked in EI since 2008. She is currently assistant director of the outreach program at First Steps, Inc. in Nashville, TN, providing developmental therapy and coaching caregivers using the FGRBI model through Tennessee’s Early Intervention System. She has prior experience in the child and adolescent mental health field. LeeAnn also parents a hilarious, smart, and beautiful 8-year-old who is on the autism spectrum.
Contact: leeannfinnegan@gmail.com
Suggested Citation
Bolton, D. (2022, September 1). Frame it in a way children can understand: An interview with LeeAnn Finnegan [Audio podcast]. imagine. www.imagine.musictherapy.biz