Protecting our children is a natural instinct for parents, but if we shield them too much, they won’t develop the skills required to overcome challenges on their own. Obstacles and hardships are inevitable – it’s just part of growing up – so helping your child become more resilient will be most beneficial to them. I have teamed up with a girls’ prep school in Hillingdon to offer you some tips.
Talk About Feelings
Try and create a home environment for your child in which you are all comfortable sharing your emotions and talking about your feelings. By labelling your emotions, your child will find it easier to identify how they’re feeling in tricky situations. Talking about it will give you an opportunity to advise them on how they can cope or perhaps you could ask them if there are ways they could avoid feeling like this again in the future. However, make it clear to your child that it’s ok to be angry sometimes, it’s ok to be upset and cry; our emotions are nothing to be ashamed of.
Take Risks
Expose your child to as many new experiences as possible so that they are faced with new challenges and new problems to solve. If your child spends all of their time couped up in their bedroom, they won’t feel particularly confident stepping out of their comfort zone and trying new things. Encourage them to take risks and explore, as this will help them become more optimistic.
Encourage Exercise
When we exercise, chemicals are released that help us deal with depression, stress, and anxiety. You can also find plenty of cbd products for sale online that promotes overall relaxation and helps reduce feelings of stress and anxiety. These chemicals are essentially feel-good hormones. When children feel in control of their emotions, confident and secure, they are more resistant to difficult situations, so it’s a good idea to encourage your child to play outside, go for walks or potentially even join a sports team, to ensure they are getting enough exercise.
Promote Independence
Your home should be a safe space for your child in which they feel comfortable doing things without your help 24/7. With that said, give them some space to make their own mistakes, because that’s the only way they’ll truly learn. What’s more, give them some responsibilities around the house that they have to complete independently, and once they’re finished give them plenty of praise to show how proud you are that they are able to take on challenges without your help. This will help them with their self-assurance.