Top Tips for Parents on Social & Emotional Health of Children

Importance of Social Health

The benefits of social health and wellness and the positive effects they have on maintaining healthy relationships with people around us are unfathomable. Children who develop social-well being right from a very young age enjoy many physical and mental benefits. A strong social life and good social health are enablers to perform better in life and in situations that require a child to impart their emotional caliber and skills.

Good social skills are reflective of a good personality. They are a determining factor for children’s health as they motor them to be in control of their feelings and emotions. They allow the children to get along with people around them, including their peers, parents, and more. Children who lack basic social skills have poor social health. They are unable to communicate effectively with people around them, get easily stressed, build relationship issues, and more.

Tips for Parents on Children's Social Skills

As parents, it becomes your duty to instill basic social skills into your children, right from the stage when the kids start to build their foundation. While doing so, here are a few tips to keep in mind:

• If your kid struggles to fit into social settings, initiate a positive conversation with them. Ask them questions that encourage them to open up with you.
• Motivate your child to participate in activities they are genuinely interested in. This will help them socialise with other kids who share the same interest as them.
• Demonstrate good skills yourself and be a role model for your kids. Teach them cooperation skills, listening skills, and sharing skills, amongst many more.

Importance of Emotional Health

Just like physical health, nurturing a child’s emotional health is equally important. Poor emotional health results in developing disorders like depression, anxiety, stress, ADHD, and more, during the later stages of life. Children can easily get trapped in situations that can make their mental health fragile.

Certain factors like the constant pressure on them to perform well academically, the fast-paced life they are surrounded with, lack of quality time with parents, etc., can all be major causes of poor emotional health for a child. When a child is mentally healthy and in control of their emotions, they grow intellectually. They develop cognitive skills, learn to perform well in all spheres of life, cope with trauma in a healthy manner, and end up living a composed and blissful life in the long run.

Tips for Parents on Children's Mental Health

If you are a parent who is looking for simple tips that can cater to your child’s better emotional health, here are a few to keep in mind:

• Accept the likes and dislikes of your child. Encourage them to excel in whatever field interests them.
• Make sure to expose them to various options so that they can explore their options and learn what intrigues them the most. Don’t try to limit their opportunities.
• Teach them how to be kind and tolerant, but love them for what they are. Avoid sheltering them from complex situations. Instead, teach them how to face such scenarios and come out of them stronger.