Tips For Parents To Help Children Manage Fears

Parents To Help Children Manage FearsFear is an inevitable emotion. In kids fear can seem to be often irrational; however, it is absolutely a normal part of childhood. Learning how to manage fear is something that can be taught by parents from the early-onset. One major reason for emphasizing this area is to ensure children feel confident in themselves and that they learn how to navigate their lower emotions sustainably. Although coping with fear may not be easy, often this is even harder for some children who think differently. They may have trouble processing information in their mind and keeping emotions in check.

A lot of the time children also seek help from their teachers, to build a deeper understanding of child's psychology counselling courses for teachers can instil the skills to understand and navigate children during their fearful moments.

Top 4 Tips For Parents To Help Children Manage Recurrent Fearful Thoughts –
Listen to your child

Often parents ignore what the child has to say when they are scared. As adults, things can seem minor from the outside, but it is important to remember the way children views is situation is as real. If you are only attempting to reason with them or just say there's nothing to worry about, you may end up neglecting how they are feeling in those moments. Listening actively means you are willing to listen to your child while putting yourself in their shoes. By this, you can view where the fear is coming from. Also, if you are not taking fear seriously, it may make the child feel “it’s not okay to feel this way”. All of these together can damage the child’s mind, which may lead to more problems in their later life.




Talk about it

At an early age, kids may find it hard to articulate what they are feeling. Your work as parents is to carefully ask specific questions so he/she can build up thoughts to explain further. Also, try to rephrase what is being said to confirm if that is what your child is trying to say to you or not. Once you understand what is going on in your child's mind, you can now smooth talk. Don't forget to validate their fear. Your child needs to realize that you understand them. It will build a sense of trust with which you can help to ease out their feeling of being afraid.

Provide calming support

Your words can do a lot when it comes to helping the child to calm down. A child can feel comfortable when they feel safe. This sense of safety when the child is afraid can come from just by listening to voice and words. Fear can be a powerful feeling, especially when they persist. So it is essential to check if your child can cope up with fear, and if there has been any improvement or not.

Teach reasoning skill

Reasoning fear may not seem a successful strategy at the initial stage. However, if you focus on the reasoning skill, your child can learn to be more practical about fearful situations. Since fear has a tendency to make people believe the worst and go down the rabbit hole, realistic thinking can allow children to develop how to process the thoughts into smaller pieces and challenge those fearful thinking. Since tackling fear all at once can be overwhelming, teaching them how to walk step by step can provide a sensitive approach to deal with fear.

Takeaway

Above all, parents must bear in mind that changes take time. Being patient with your children and supporting them throughout is the key to helping them navigate their negative emotions. The world is an unpredictable place to live in, for any of us. Learning how to handle fearful thoughts is primary to all of us for our personal growth. Hence, it is essential to help children learn how to manage fear and reduce anxiety. The coping mechanism when not monitored can lead to an unhealthy pattern of misbelief, which is why teaching about how to navigate fear from an early stage can boost their confidence and approach life with a courageous attitude. In schools, educators with counselling courses for teachers can also be of great help to help them build resilience and autonomy for life.