How to Talk to Kids About Serious or Chronic Illness
This is a recording of a live Good Grief community workshop. Members get access to expert-led sessions where they can ask questions, connect with others, and find support.
Kids almost always sense when something serious is happening in the family, and they cope better when adults talk with them honestly rather than around them. Mackenzie walked us through a four-step framework along with practical scripts, age-appropriate language, and concrete tools to help kids feel safe, included, and supported throughout an illness journey.
When a family member is seriously ill, one of the hardest questions parents face is how much to tell their kids. Most children already sense that something is wrong. What they need is not protection from the truth, but honest, age-appropriate information that helps them make sense of what is happening.
In this workshop, certified child life specialist and grief counselor Mackenzie Liberta of The Grieving Space shares a four-step framework for having these conversations — no matter the illness, no matter the age of the child.
What you'll learn in this video
- What research tells us about kids and illness — and why honest conversations reduce fear rather than increase it
- What children understand at each developmental stage from infants to teens
- The four-step framework: prepare yourself, share the news, educate your child about the diagnosis, and make space for questions and feelings
- How to use real language including the name of the illness rather than vague terms that create misconceptions
- The 6 C's and 3 W's that kids are most concerned about during a family illness
- Practical scripts and sentence starters for different ages and situations
- How to create ongoing space for questions as treatment progresses
Resources from this session
This session and recap are for educational purposes only and are not medical, psychological, or therapeutic advice. Please consult a qualified professional about your family's specific situation.
The complete workshop deck, notes, and resources for this session are available in the Good Grief Community Platform.
Access the full recapWorkshop led by
Mackenzie Liberta
Certified Child Life Specialist & Founder of The Grieving Space