Building Resilience in Kids
It’s never too early to start teaching your kids to cope ...
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Kids who learn healthy ways to express and cope with their emotions are more likely to:
Sometimes kids don’t have the words to express how they feel and may act out their emotions.
Your child might hit or throw toys when angry or frustrated.
Or they might have a hard time settling down at bedtime after an exciting day.
Use this as a learning opportunity to teach your child to express their feelings in a positive way. Teach your child to act on emotions by:
As well as dealing with emotional upsets when they happen, there are longer-term strategies you can use to help your child to manage their difficult emotions.
Help them find new strategies – Add new activities to the list so they have a variety of ways of coping with emotions eg. dancing, games, deep breaths
Accept feelings – Acknowledge your child’s emotions and let them know that it’s ok to have and express feelings. Respond with reassuring words or a hug
Listen to your child’s feelings – Let them talk about feelings so they feel heard. Try not to minimise, dismiss or ‘fix’ the negative feelings straight away
Create a story – By asking them what happened, what they thought, what they felt and what they did (or could do differently next time)
Encourage problem solving – Once your child has expressed their feelings, work together to come up with a plan to solve the problem (if you can)
Find out what helps them – Have a list of activities they find calming and that helps them get through difficult emotions eg. read a story together
Be a safe space for your child – So they feel secure and able to express their emotions and find ways to deal with them
Here's a list of supports you can check out:
Kids who are able to understand, express and manage a wide range of emotions experience long term benefits to their mental health and wellbeing.
If you need some support in helping your child cope with their emotions, give us a call on 1300 30 1300 (QLD & NT) and speak to one of our trained counsellors.
Not living in QLD or NT? Check out this list of Parentline counselling services in each state or territory.
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