How Comfortable Are You With Your Child Taking Risks?
How comfortable are you with your child taking risks?
Earlier today, I asked you to voice your opinion on whether or not you would allow certain behaviors. If you didn’t get a chance to share or see how other fellow parents weighed in please visit my stories after this post.
Risky childhood behavior can be a tricky topic because there is a fine line between true danger and risk.
Do we allow our toddler to stand at the edge of a pond or lake picking weeds while we chat with a fellow mom/dad from 12 feet back?
Do we let our preschooler paint and scribble on their art table?
(not risky for the child but risky for the parent, no?)
Do we let our preteen stay up late this evening knowing the next day we are taking their final exam?
Do we let our teen spend their allowance on another phone case knowing their allowance is also their lunch money?
The truth is I can’t give you the answers to these. Each of us will determine things differently, but I hope these few tips will help guide you.
🌠 Life is neither good or bad. It just is
Labels help us understand our world and are necessary however as we increase in consciousness we see that there are so many aspects of life that do not fit our good/bad label.
If our teen fails the exam and has to retake it, is that good, bad, or neither?
If we can't get a hold of our emotions today, are we good, bad, or neither?
🌠 Anxiety vs. real danger
Unless it truly is an immediate danger, practice pausing first and asking if the situation is truly dangerous or if it stems from our anxiety. This limits our excessive “NOs” allowing our child to fall, literally or figuratively. Maybe they get a scratch and now they’ve learned that life has limits.
🌠 Be encouraging rather than discouraging
When our child falls, they desire someone who is there to support them and let them know that risk is okay. You can be that person! Rather than “I told you, see!” encourage them with phrases like, Wow, that was a big fall! It looks like it hurts, can I offer you a listening ear/hug?
This post was brought to you by @conscious.parents. More than a toy designer, be mindful is a community of parents who are going through the process of building the best denizens of next generation. As such we encourage and delight in our community participating in our blog and social media efforts. Your voice will be heard across our community and who knows which kid or which parent your wisdom will enlighten! Feel free to email us at howdy@mindful-engineering.com or submit an inquiry on our site if you have a blog post idea you want to share!
