Residents are picking up the pieces following devastating flooding in Central Texas over the Fourth of July holiday weekend.
The natural disaster, described by officials as "catastrophic," has left at least 94 people dead and at least 41 missing, many of them children who were attending Camp Mystic, a girls summer camp in Hunt, Texas.
Experts say parents shouldn't shy away from discussing the flooding and its impact with older children.
The American Academy of Pediatrics says not talking about a major flood can be "more frightening for children" and can lead kids to avoid asking questions or talking about the event and their reactions.
Here are tips for parents on how to start a conversation with kids.
Dr. Karin Price, chief of psychology at Texas Children's Hospital, specializes in trauma and anxiety and recommends talking about the floods with kids ages 4 and older.
Price said parents can take the lead and start a conversation, and can then answer any questions their child may have.
"For those of us that are here in Texas, we're hearing a lot about it, and so it's easy to say, 'I know you've heard about this,' but for those that might be in other parts of the country, just opening up the question of, 'I'm not sure if you've heard about this really difficult thing that's happening in Texas, where they have floods,' and a child might say they have or they have not," Price said, speaking with "Good Morning America."
"The whole message is, 'If it's something you want to talk about, I am definitely here to talk with you about it," Price continued.
Price said parents should adapt what they say to their child's developmental age and adjust accordingly based on the child's needs or condition.
"Stick to the fact of what happened with as much clarity as possible, and encourage question asking, because we want to make sure that we're trying to understand what our children think and understand about the tragedy and then also to provide them with additional information that will help them to cope," said Price.
Lauren Gaspar, a licensed clinical social worker, held a public online video meeting Sunday to share tips for parents, emphasizing the need for parents to recognize that such an event may be their child's first experience with death.
"You have to explain to them that there are children who have died, and children, developmentally, typically, do not think that children are capable of dying," Gaspar said, according to a video recording shared on her website. "Children, let's say between ages 6 and 11, typically think that people who die are either very … sick or very … old. And having to conceptualize that a child has died is going to be difficult for young brains. And then when we expand that to multiple children, that's even more difficult for children to conceptualize and understand."
According to Price, any response or feeling a child exhibits "is OK" and it isn't necessarily a sign that there's a problem.
But Price said parents can keep an eye out for certain signs that may be unexpected or might not be verbal cues. These indicators may be behavior changes, clinginess, separation anxiety, sleeping problems, appetite changes, not wanting to go outside, not taking care of themselves or a child not enjoying activities they previously liked to do.
"We might expect, for example, to see our children feeling particularly sad, but instead they might be feeling angry or irritable, or they might not talk about their feelings at all," Price said. "We might see it in their behavior, where they might be being especially clingy or not wanting to be alone, or having a difficult time sleeping."
To address these issues, Price added that "it's totally OK for parents to change their habits in a temporary way to help their children feel more safe and more secure."
A traumatic event like a major flood or natural disaster can trigger an emotional response in anyone, but Price said it's "really important" to talk to children in a calm manner and acknowledge a child's response.
"Acknowledging the feeling is really important, and [so is] labeling it, because that's helping our kids learn to label their own feelings," Price said.
"The other thing that parents can do is talk about their own feelings in a calm and appropriate way," Price added. "Making sure that we're not only labeling their feelings and handling them in a calm way, but also modeling for them how to talk about feelings."
If children are worried about their safety following a flood, Price says parents should put the event into perspective and not encourage kids to tough out a situation or avoid crying.
"[Make] sure that kids understand that they are safe. So while the flooding that's happened in Central Texas is devastating … it wasn't anybody's fault, and it's an event that happens so rarely," Price said.
Coast Guard rescuer helps save 165 people in Texas flash floodsParents should steer clear of blaming anyone or anything for a flood or a natural disaster, according to Price.
"We might feel angry, and it's OK to say, 'I feel kind of angry,' but yelling and blaming generally doesn't help the situation at all," Price said.
"When we're talking to somebody who has been directly impacted by this tragedy, it's really important to first listen and empathize and not minimize their experience by saying things like, 'I know how you feel,' or, 'You're really lucky that it wasn't worse,'" Price said. "Those kinds of things can be really detrimental to, particularly, individuals that have had the experience impact them directly."
Camp Mystic counselor who died in Texas flooding remembered as 'loyal and beloved'With older children and teens, Price said parents can limit how much their kids are hearing or seeing about the floods but should also recognize that it may not be possible to eliminate exposure entirely.
"We do encourage parents to limit media exposure in whatever form that takes," said Price. "But we also know that that's not 100% realistic for school-age kids and our adolescents who have lots of access, and so we also encourage parents to know what their kids are viewing, so that they have the opportunity to answer questions but also to correct any misinformation or misperception of the information that their kids are getting."
Traumatic events and news can lead to negative feelings, but Price said parents can guide children by letting them know they don't have to be constantly sad, unhappy or scared.
"One really easy and important coping skill for children, as well as for adults, is to make sure that you're still engaging in pleasant, distracting activities," said Price. "As adults, we often feel like we shouldn't give in to laughter or having fun or thinking about different things, because it feels like it's taking away from the tragedy, when, in fact, it's really protective for us to be able to do those things, to use those healthy distractions to take care of ourselves and to keep our mental health."
Price recommends families directly impacted by the flooding reach out to a professional for immediate support and for other families who aren't directly impacted to monitor for any persistent changes.
"All symptoms are OK, but when those difficulties persist over weeks and months, or when they interfere with daily living -- so, being around family, engaging in fun activities, eventually going to school -- or if they seem to be contributing to larger mental health concerns or exacerbating existing mental health concerns, those would be times to seek help," Price said.
Editor's note: This article has been updated to include the most recent death toll figure from the Texas flooding.
