Planet Youth workshops will help Mayo, Roscommon and Galway parents overcome Covid-19 challenges

Mayo, Roscommon and Galway parents dealing with parenting challenges created by Covid-19 are invited to attend online workshops designed to help them through these unprecedented times.

Parenting Your Teenager Through Covid-19 will be the title of the interactive online workshops at 7.30pm on the following dates:

• Mayo – Thursday, April 23;
• Roscommon – Tuesday, April 28;
• Galway – Thursday, April 30.

The free events are hosted by Planet Youth, a primary prevention initiative that aims to enhance young people’s health and wellbeing and assist them in achieving their full potential. Planet Youth has been operating in the counties of Mayo, Roscommon and Galway since 2018.

“A key area of focus for us has been to provide support to parents in the region. We are very conscious that parents are now dealing with extraordinary challenges and we want to be there for them,” said Emmet Major, a member of the Planet Youth steering committee.

“As we are all restricted in our face-to-face contact at this time, we are holding these workshops online using an innovative facilitated format.

“Parenting Your Teenager Through Covid-19 offers parents the opportunity to engage with other parents in conversation where they can share their challenges while also acknowledging the good parenting that is taking place.”

The workshops, supported by Healthy Ireland funds, will be led by Adolescent Psychotherapist Gina Dowd. Gina works with teenagers and their families.

“We know from the extensive Planet Youth surveys carried out last year that, by and large, parents are doing a great job. For example, over 90 per cent of 15 and 16 year-olds surveyed across the region said they received warmth and caring easily, and these workshops will help to build on that,” added Emmet.

The workshops will last for approximately 90 minutes and will be followed by a further video created by Gina that will be circulated to parents in the days afterwards.

A parent who attended a recent trial event for this format, described it as “very helpful and re-assuring.” She said: “This is a very challenging time for parents, and it was great to chat with other parents who are in the same boat right now, and also to get some professional pointers from Gina. I found it very supportive and I think many parents will derive great benefits from attending.”

To register for the workshop, simply email your county – Mayo, Roscommon or Galway – to [email protected] and you’ll be contacted with a registration link.