Helping your child cope
The more that your child interacts with others, the more likely that they will encounter new, and sometimes challenging, experiences. With new experiences come new and often complex emotions, such as frustration, loneliness, and self-doubt. Learning to cope with these feelings is not easy, even for adults! You can help your child practice different coping strategies so they are prepared to face difficult situations that they may come across in the future.
A big part of resilience is being able to deal with tough or uncomfortable emotions or problems.
Remind them of things that they can do to help themselves calm down – including what worked in the past! Encourage them to use emotion regulation strategies like “belly breathing” and counting to 10.For more detailed information regarding strategies for managing emotions, go to this link.
It’s never too early to start teaching your child about coping with unexpected events and effective problem-solving. Use small, everyday challenges as opportunities to help your child practice their skills and tackle their problems. For more information about problem-solving, go here.
Life can be challenging at times and that’s okay.
Having the courage to trudge through the trenches of life is called “grit,” and children who have it are better prepared to cope with difficult situations. Encourage your child to:
1. Handle challenging situations on their own.
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- If you let them avoid age-appropriate hardships, they may not be prepared to do so when they get older and you aren’t with them.
- Give them the opportunity to work through something challenging, like building a block tower, buttoning up their coat, or using utensils without your help.
2. View challenges as learning opportunities or “adventures.”
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- This can help them be motivated to seek out tasks that push them to grow.
- If your child is going on their first field trip with their daycare, talk about how they will have the awesome opportunity to explore a new place, rather than focusing on the unexpected or parts of the trip you may be worried about.
When it unexpectedly starts to rain while you’re at the park, they may feel sad that they have to go home, but point out how your family now has extra time to play hide and seek or read a book.
Don’t let them flounder!
When your child is having trouble handling disappointment or recovering from a loss, it’s okay to help them out.
- Use emotion regulation strategies with them and encourage them to talk about their feelings and thoughts related to the situation.
- Help them discover what lessons they learned from their hardships by pointing out the “silver lining”.
- Grit develops over time, so don’t expect your little one to be an expert after just one challenge.