On June 12, a Sunday afternoon from 2:30 to 3:30, WizChinese’s Palo Alto Chinese Parents’ Club (PACPC) held the second support group meeting of their “Pressure and Emotional Management” series. With ten attendees, Dr. Rona Hu, Dr. Catherine Shir, and Dr. Flora Ma led a discussion following up on the previous Zoom meeting last week about social anxiety. 

The doctors covered how social anxiety disorder can be both genetic or acquired, and has been amplified amongst children due to the pandemic’s isolating times. Treatments including cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), medications, and parents’ guidance are important and beneficial. Compassionate listening through being observant, affirming your kid, and asking open ended questions while also giving your child space and time when they need it are significant ways to connect with your child. Being open, wanting to help your child feel safe and to make room for your child to make mistakes are especially important as well. When your child pushes you away and does not want to talk to you, the doctors recommended being action-oriented and doing things together rather than talking together, taking notes of the opinions your child shares, whether positive or negative, and bringing out even the littlest pearls of communication. A growth mindset is crucial to any form of connection with your child, and while for Asians, perfection is the standard achieved through obedience and quietness, learning to open up and speak up are important to breaking the bamboo ceiling within the workplace.