Even though children live in a different world to you, they still can experience a range of negative emotions that can cause them to be concerned. They don’t understand the seriousness or harshness of daily activities, and simple thoughts can lead them to worry. In any case, you should learn to take these feelings seriously and actually encourage them to talk about these concerns. Even if they may problems that don’t warrant worry, it’s important for you to talk it through with them and explain why that is.
Validating concerns
Not every concern that your child comes out with is going to be insignificant, and sometimes they may come out with something that is alarming. It’s important that you’re listening and encouraging them to express these feelings so that serious issues that they may encounter are heard and acted on. Let them see that their concerns are important to you, and show them that you’re going to be there if they need someone to talk to. Parents who tend to ignore these concerns without talking them through can expect their children not to confide in them when they made need them.
Ask questions
It’s not enough to expect them to express their concerns, as they may not feel like they’re significant enough to mention. Say they’ve experienced random pains from time to time, they might think it’s a normal occurrence for everyone. That’s not always the case, and you might end up having to check in with a pediatric chiropractor just to make sure they’re healthy.
Asking questions is sometimes the only way to get answers, and it will prove that you’re going the extra mile to express that you care for their feelings. Not asking might give them the idea that you don’t feel their feelings are important enough to pursue.
Encourage
You don’t always have to be the person to solve all of their problems, and in many cases, you should instead let them find a way to handle it. That doesn’t mean you should ignore it when they’re struggling with something, but it can be helpful to instead watch over them while they try to come up with a solution. Letting them tackle their own problems can help them to develop confidence when they overcome them, and problem-solving skills. The confidence that they can help themselves when there’s no one around to help can be a very useful tool later on in life.
Never judge them
If you judge your children because they’ve expressed concern over something, they’re not going to keep coming to you with things that worry them or trouble them. No one wants to be berated for doing something that had innocent intentions, and a child isn’t going to understand why you’re doing it when for them it’s quite a troubling scenario. Make sure you’re always showing support, no matter the concerns they’re expressing - especially if you want to be the person who is there for them when they need help.
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