THE BROTHERS: Rory, 9, and Arthur, 6

Paediatric physiotherapist Jo Mcmeechan, 34, lives in Bristol with her husband Alex, 38, and their two sons Rory, nine, and Arthur, six.

Both boys suffered with their mental health during the pandemic, but in very different ways ....

Rory had just recovered from sepsis and had severe asthma a week before the pandemic, making him extremely vulnerable to coronavirus, so was advised to shield for 12 weeks.

Jo and Alex noticed his mental health suffered.

Jo says: “He really struggled. He missed his friends and had limited opportunities to safely get outdoors.

“He struggled to sleep and had no motivation. He became very tearful and distressed most days.”

As schools reopened for the kids of key workers, the couple sent him back. “We thought the risk of Covid was

less than the damage to his mental health,” says Jo. “The difference in him was incredible.”

Younger brother Arthur, who has autism and ADHD, had a different reaction and is now incredibly anxious around crowds after his time isolating. Jo says: “Going back to socialising has been a real challenge as his anxiety is through the roof. He’s had to go back to school on a reduced timetable of 90 minutes a day.

“He’s run out of the school gates towards traffic to avoid crowds or hidden in bushes to avoid people. At the harvest fair he saw the crowds, sat down and began hugging his knees. Before the pandemic he would have thrived in those situations.”

Jo and Alex had to manage the situation alone. Jo adds: “A lot of our community teams were redistributed to Covid, so there were not enough people working in a system that was already overstretched.”

He’s run towards traffic to avoid people JO MCMEECHAN ON SON ARTHUR’S ANXIETY