Think of it as a 'Dear Abby' service for Barrington that aims to decrease stress for parents who are juggling schooling, parenting, and working amid the pandemic...”

Ann Allain, a school counselor at St. Andrew's School

The BAY Team recently launched a new initiative in response to parents’ concerns of the impact of COVID-19 on daily lives and schooling. "Raise Your Hand" is a community website where people can seek answers and support for questions that are on their minds.

For example, are you worried about what to do with your child’s complaints about wearing a mask or with how much screen time they are getting?

A team of informed community members will do its best to answer anonymous questions, or find resources to help.

A question recently posted to the site asked: "When my child comes home from school, they completely meltdown and seem angry. I have asked their teacher if she is seeing these behaviors at school and she assured me my child is a 'model student' and she hasn't seen the behaviors described above. Why is my child behaving so poorly after school, at home?"

Professionals offered an answer to the question: "Children often work very hard to manage their emotions and follow the rules of their environment. This can be exhausting for them, both emotionally and cognitively. It takes a lot of energy to read the social cues of their peers and teacher and determine an appropriate response. Children tend to exhibit their most challenging behaviors when they feel the safest because they implicitly trust that the adults in the situation will be able to help them manage their feelings. On some level, they know that even when they are acting their worst, the adults, usually parents, will still love them.  The short answer is they are worn out from being on their best behavior during the school day so they have an emotional meltdown when they walk in your door."

The idea for a helpful community website started when several BAY Team members with expertise in mental health were discussing what they could do to help others during the pandemic.

“We figured if one person is asking a question, chances are others are wondering the same thing,” said Ashley Szala, a behavior specialist at the Bayside Family YMCA.

Other members of the team are Jordyn Hagar, a social worker with nearly 15 years of experience. She works in a variety of settings doing individual, group, and family therapy with children, adolescents, and families, and recently created an online introduction to mental health for people who want to learn more about how to help a friend or family member who is struggling with their mental health.

Ann Allain is the school counselor at St. Andrew's School in Barrington where she has worked with students and the community for the past 15 years.

Katie Hamel is a certified student assistance xounselor (CSAC), who educates and supports the Barrington Middle School community about substance misuse prevention and early intervention services.

While not a clinical or diagnostic service, the "Raise Your Hand" team will answer questions weekly and provide resources to anyone who may need more comprehensive assistance.

“Think of it as a 'Dear Abby' service for Barrington that aims to decrease stress for parents who are juggling schooling, parenting, and working amid the pandemic, while also promoting connection within our community,” said Ms. Allain.

To ask a question anonymously, simply go to: http://www.thebayteam.org/ and click the Ask a Question button. Check back weekly for responses to questions and peruse the archive of previous questions.