How to manage stress in children
The task of raising children and making them future ready, brings many challenges. From academic stress, to teenage issues; from low self-esteem to intense peer pressure, children face it all in their years of learning and growing.
And parents feel the stress too. Parenting is one the most challenging jobs there is. It tests our patience, positivity and persistence. It can bring out our inner potential, or it can kill it completely.
The word 'stress' originates from the French word 'estrece' meaning 'narrowness' and depicts a limiting or constriction of our power and abilities.
We have the feeling of being stressed out when we think we have too much to handle either on a mental, emotional or physical level. Stress also occurs when we view change and pressure as burdens rather than as challenges.
Interestingly, what makes a person stress-full may be quite an ordinary event for another person. The secret to releasing stress is to realize that stress is created not by the event or circumstance itself, but by the way we respond to what happens to us.
Decide today to live a life that’s free of stress. The first step to this is learning how to manage stress when it crops up. It's never too late to make your children and the job of parenting, stress-free and joyful. Remember - Life is too short to postpone happiness until the conditions are just perfect.
Here are 3 stress management tips that lead to greater happiness for you and your children.
TIP 1 - START YOUR DAY WITH GRATITUDE
All of us have a lot to be grateful for, but most times, we don’t realize it. Children take for granted whatever their parents provide for them.
Train your children to start every day with 5 minutes of focusing on gratitude. Gratitude helps to cultivate a positive mind-set. Remember, as your day begins, you don’t know what the day will bring to you, but you can decide what you will bring to this day! So, choose to bring a grateful and happy ‘you’ to your day and see the benefits happen.
If you constantly think about what is wrong or what you lack, you will be more stressed out. Instead, spend 5 minutes before you get active in the morning reminding yourself what is great in your life. You can do this exercise together with your children at the start of the day.
TIP 2 – MEDITATE
In every situation, you always have two choices - either curse the darkness, or light a candle. Meditation helps you to train your mind to choose the more positive attitude.
Simply put, stress is the result of the way you think. And if you develop the ability to change the way you think, you will have in your hands the power to manage stress regardless of what the causes may be.
Stress arises out of the way you think, and since meditation is the skill of training your mind, and becoming aware of your thoughts, meditation is also one of the most effective antidotes to stress. Negative thinking produces stress and thinking positively releases it, it’s that simple in most cases.
Invest in meditation. Find an authentic and reputable teacher and make sure you and your children learn the skills of meditation. Training your mind through the ancient science of meditation shows you the way to create your own happiness and joy.
So, find a good teacher and learn the skills of meditation and mindfulness. Countless studies have shown that meditation and mindfulness help you to manage stress better.
TIP 3 – PERFECTION DOESN’T HAPPEN
It’s a fact that we all have imperfections. This includes your children too; remember that they are not perfect and are not meant to be, they are wonderful and unique just the way they are and your job as a parent is not to make them different, but rather to make them the best version of who they authentically are.
Expecting your children to be perfect will create more stress, I promise. So ease up a little, check the expectations you carry and lower them if necessary, and see how much more you can enjoy parenting and your life. You will be happily surprised.
Trying to control every moment and outcome of your life will always cause more stress for you. Instead, release a bit of control, take the action the present moment requires, and then, stop clinging to the results.
There are also important lessons adults can learn from children about managing stress. Here is one - HAVE FUN. Being around children has taught me the simple power of pursuing fun -- again and again. A simple game like hide and seek can keep a child happy and occupied for hours. The price of the game: nothing. The fun: priceless.
But fun doesn't just happen. You have to make it a priority in your life or it won’t happen. Life's too short to not have it. In my perspective, life is what you make it to be, nothing more, nothing less.
So HAVE FUN with your children and make your family happier and stress free!
If you wish to become a stress-free parent, I highly recommend our ‘Meditation Made Simple’ program as the perfect first step.
Click here to see dates and register http://www.soulcentre.org/events
Vikas Malkani is an authority and one of the world’s leading teachers of meditation and mindfulness. He has taught the secrets of meditation to CEO’s, Hollywood Stars, Royalty, Entrepreneurs, Doctors, Psychologists and Sports Champions.
SoulCentre is Asia’s Premier Centre for Meditation, Mindfulness & Stress-Management. www.soulcentre.org
SoulKids is an award-winning life skills program that makes children future-ready by teaching them leadership, resilience, emotional intelligence, teamwork and more.
Find out more about SoulKids programs and one-on-one coaching here www.soulkids.org or email us at info@soulcentre.org
