Raising happy, emotionally healthy children doesn’t just happen on its own; it takes lots of love and attention from both parents and children. Parents need to understand their child’s developmental stage and make sure they are responding to their child’s needs appropriately; children need to be taught how to deal with negative emotions in constructive ways instead of using avoidance as a coping mechanism. This article will discuss how to foster positive mental health in your children by teaching them about emotions, practicing empathy, enforcing consequences for destructive behavior, and more.
1) Love Them
It sounds cliché but you cannot force your children to feel certain emotions or love you in return. They have their own brains and hearts. Instead of trying to make them love you back, focus on showing them how much you love them. Hugging and kissing your kids shows that they are important to you and makes them feel loved even if they don’t say it back right away. When they do tell you that they love you, be sure to let them know how happy those words make you feel. Expressing positive feelings towards your child is a great way to help build a strong relationship with him or her.
2) Acknowledge Their Feelings
Kids are going to feel things. All of them. Feelings aren’t always about us or something we’ve done. Sometimes kids get frustrated or sad—and it doesn’t mean they don’t love you. If your child is upset, acknowledge their feelings and ask what you can do to help. Acknowledge that everyone has bad days and not everything will go as planned. You might say, I know you wanted to play with your friends today but it looks like rain outside so I think we should just stay in and play a game together. In other words: Be present when your children need you most. And remember that there’s no such thing as a perfect parent (no matter how many parenting books you read). You're doing great!
3) Have Plenty of Physical Contact
Cuddling with your children is a great way to build positive relationships and teach them self-worth. According to The National Institute of Health , children who have positive relationships with their parents are less likely to be diagnosed with depression and anxiety as adults. If you want to raise happy, emotionally healthy children, touch them; it's good for both of you! Consider including physical contact in your daily routine. At bath time or when tucking your child into bed at night or helping him/her put on shoes or socks—every moment is an opportunity to embrace!
4) Discuss Their Feelings
It’s important to help your children learn how to deal with their emotions in a healthy way. A good place to start is by simply talking about what they’re feeling. When they share their feelings with you, ask them questions like How do you feel when that happens? or What do you think would happen if that changed? These types of questions will help them process their feelings and show them how to work through difficult situations. When your child is struggling to cope with a situation or emotion, don’t be afraid to offer suggestions or provide advice—especially if they're young; sometimes guidance can make all the difference.
5) Show Your Own Negative Feelings
You know what it’s like to feel a certain way about yourself or another person. Kids pick up on your negative emotions; being overly strict and harsh with them might make them think they are bad, defective or useless. This can lead to low self-esteem. So don’t constantly criticize your kids; instead, share your own feelings with them when they get angry or upset: I don’t like it when you speak to me that way. I want you to show me respect because I love you very much. Encourage children who apologize quickly after getting angry at others. Praise kids for taking responsibility for their actions and helping resolve conflicts. Also try to spend time alone with each child each day—even if it’s just five minutes—to talk about how he or she is feeling. And be sure to set aside some special one-on-one time every week as well, so your child knows you care deeply about him or her as an individual.
6) Be Consistent with Discipline Methods
There’s no right or wrong way to discipline children. What matters most is that parents are consistent with their methods and enforce discipline consistently—meaning that when you say no TV after homework every night, there will be no exceptions. The same goes for timeouts: use them all of the time or not at all. No ifs, ands or buts. As they get older (and many times more rambunctious), kids need more discipline to ensure they don’t become overwhelmed by day-to-day activities and events. Be clear about what behaviors are acceptable and what aren’t. It may seem like common sense, but it never hurts to spell out exactly what your expectations are. For example, tell your child that screaming in public is unacceptable. If he does it anyway, follow through on whatever consequence you set forth earlier in a calm manner without yelling or getting emotional yourself. Consistency can also help prevent sibling rivalry later on; siblings who know exactly where they stand with each other from an early age tend to get along better as adults than those who were unclear about boundaries growing up.
7) Talk about Misbehaving People as He or She not You
While it is often easy to notice how your child misbehaves, says Dr. John Gottman, Ph.D., cofounder of The Gottman Institute and author of The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work , it is more difficult to see your role in that misbehavior. If you want to raise happy kids with healthy self-esteem and emotional intelligence (which will help them feel less stressed out), start by looking at yourself. It's impossible to parent flawlessly—you're only human! Still, there are certain parenting mistakes that can have a long-lasting negative impact on your children. Here are nine of those mistakes that you can start correcting today
8) Teach Them to Take Responsibility for Their Actions
Parents and teachers can work to build up a child’s self-esteem by reinforcing positive behaviors. But it’s important not to overdo it; let children know that you love them no matter what, but also be sure to tell them when they’ve made mistakes or misbehaved. Your criticism should focus on their actions and behavior—not on their being as a person. When you are disappointed in your children, keep your disappointment out of their face and save it for a time when they have done something wrong—then discuss what happened with them calmly and show them how to fix things. The most important thing is to let kids know that there are consequences for their actions and that if they don’t behave appropriately there will be negative results.
9) Make Time for Family Togetherness
Family meals are a great way to spend time together and increase your child’s happiness. Whether it’s dinner or breakfast—or even Sunday brunch—set aside one night each week to gather around a table. It’s also important to make sure that as your children get older they continue to make time for their family. Encourage activities like movie nights, cooking sessions or board game nights. It will help bring everyone closer together and improve both their quality of life and overall happiness. After all, there is no better gift than spending time with those you love.
Family togetherness plays an important role in helping your children develop into happy and emotionally healthy adults. In fact, more than 50 percent of teens say they have trouble managing their emotions and dealing with stress. Furthermore, research shows that 85 percent of our happiness comes from within ourselves rather than external factors such as material wealth, appearance or accomplishments. Even if we aren’t born with a smile on our face, good mental health is something we can learn at any age through various lifestyle choices including setting healthy boundaries between work and home life and prioritizing relationships over what others think about us. No matter what else happens in your child's day—whether it be success or failure—make sure to remind them how much you love them because words do not become actions until spoken aloud.
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