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Photo of two parents telling their child about their divorce as the child frowns
divorce, Parenting Tips, Parents

Helping Your Children Cope With Divorce: Telling Your Kids

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Helping Your Children Cope With Divorce NEW! Welcome to Talking to Your Kids About Divorce, brought to you by the team at Beech Acres Parenting Center! In this FREE text-based course, you’ll be given a brief introduction to talking to your children about divorce and how to keep them informed throughout the process. The decision to divorce usually is achieved after intentional thought and careful consideration. While you may not have chosen to experience divorce, you do have a choice in the way you approach this crisis, especially with your children. Divorce is complicated and painful but be assured that you and your children can move forward. You can decide to be a good role model for your children and turn what could be a devastating experience into an opportunity for growth and a fulfilling future. This process begins with letting your children know about your intention to divorce. Telling Your Kids There are many feelings and concerns that children experience during separation and divorce. Some common emotions you will see include anger, fear, sadness, confusion, loneliness, and guilt. It helps for parents to think through what information children will need before announcing the divorce. They will have plenty of questions, and there are certain things that they need to hear from both parents. Tell Them Together It is critically important that both parents tell the children about the divorce. This is a critical step in demonstrating a united support system and can help as you work through custody and co-parenting. When parents tell children together about divorce, several things are more likely to happen. First, there will be less focus on a “bad person” or one of the parents being seen as “at fault,” so your child is less likely to feel pressure to take sides. Secondly, your children will see you demonstrating your ability to cooperate. Finally, approaching this discussion together will help your child adjust more readily to the situation. Begin With Love Once both of you are ready to have the discussion, prepare by using the strength of love. Let your children know that they are loved and will continue to be loved deeply by both parents. Though the marriage has ended, the family continues, just in a different structure. Assure them that they will be able to continue to love both parents equally and the same as before. Give Them Perspective Next, offer them perspective on the situation. They should know that the decision to divorce was carefully thought out and that significant effort went into trying to make the marriage work. While your feelings for one another have changed, the special bonds between you as parent and child have not. Let them know that specifics and logistics will be carefully considered and communicated to them throughout the process. Answer Their Questions Finally, be prepared to address their curiosity. They are going to have questions. Lots of questions. They just may not be ready to ask you right away. Where will we live? With whom? How will this affect school? What do I say to my friends? Be prepared to address all of the questions they have. Tell them the complex feelings they have are okay. The ages of your children will significantly impact how they react to the news of your divorce and will require nuanced responses. Below you will find some age-appropriate responses to some common issues. Infants (0-18 Months) Your infants may be too young to understand what is happening, but it is still essential to be prepared to address any issues that may arise with your youngest children. Infants may experience changes in sleeping patterns, changes in eating habits, and difficulty when separating from mom or dad. Help them with these reactions by maintaining consistency in their care, environment, and routines. Whenever possible, build gradually towards any change in people they see regularly or shifts in their routines. Try never to fight in front of them and avoid displays of anger or emotional outbursts. Divorce is one of many Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) that can long term effects on your child’s mental well-being. You know affection is critical to your baby’s development at this stage of their life, so make sure to continue providing plenty of physical attention and lots and lots of hugs. Want to learn more about what to expect from your baby and how to help them through your divorce? Click here to download some facts and tips from our experts. Toddlers (18 Months-3 Years) While toddlers may still be too young to really understand the deep emotions surrounding what is happening, they will be old enough to recognize a big change in their lives and will have big emotions to match. Toddlers may regress in sleeping, potty training, and eating. They may also become more clingy and attached to adults in their lives and security items like blankets or pacifiers. Address these reactions head-on with love. Make sure both of you are saying “I love you” to your child regularly. As with your younger children, consistency in routine and care is important as well. Want to learn more about what to expect from your toddler and how to help them through your divorce? Click here to download some facts and tips from our experts. Preschoolers (3-5 Years) The older your children are at the time of your divorce can increase the intensity of the emotional and behavioral reactions they are likely to have. Preschoolers who are just getting used to routines may demonstrate clingy behavior, especially during transition times to a caregiver, preschool, or going back and forth between mom and dad’s homes. They may show regression in developmental behaviors such as eating, sleeping, and talking. Some revert back to bedwetting. Kids at this age may also have a fear of abandonment or doubt that they are loved. Make sure that both parents reassure them that they are indeed loved! Provide affection and verbal reassurance. You can never say “I love you” too often. Try to

Spongebob Meme that says "Waking your kid up after daylight savings time" with Spongebob squinting angrily
Parenting Tips, Parents, Strengths

You Can Survive Daylight Savings Time!

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You Can Survive Daylight Savings Time! Daylight. Savings. Time. In the fall, it’s great! Fall back! An extra hour to sleep in, yay! Springing forward? LOSING an hour of sleep? Not so much. For parents, it can be a minor annoyance, nothing an extra cup or three of coffee can’t handle, but for your kids, it may be a different story. Daylight savings can really impact your children’s sleep routine. Their little internal clocks become accustomed to their routines and any change, especially one as disruptive that impacts an hour of sleep, can be challenging. This year try shifting their bedtimes by 10-15 minutes, 1-2 weeks ahead of the time change to help them adjust. Preparation is key in a successful time change transition, but most parents sometimes forget about it, are surprised by it, and then have to deal with the consequences. The consequences may include: Fatigue (obviously!) Moodiness (beware of those teenage mood swings) Increased (in frequency and intensity) tantrums and meltdowns (great news for your toddler) Tardiness (you don’t want to walk in late for church, miss the best table at brunch or gasp! be late for school on Monday!) If your child does seem more tired, is running late to everything, or seems more irritated with you than normal, lean into your strengths of perspective and forgiveness. Recognize and acknowledge that they are feeling the effects of the time change and that their bodies and minds will catch up eventually. Encourage them to use perseverance to get used to that change. Encourage them to use that extra hour of daylight to go outside and play. Remember this can be really hard on kids, which means it will be hard on you too mom and dad! But with a little preparation and using your family’s strengths, you’re sure to find good use of all that “extra” time.

Graphic of a black smartphone with positive text messages displayed on the screen
Parenting Tips

Let Your Kids Know That You Love Them Every Day…And Make Sure They See It!

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Sometimes your children just need to hear that you love them. Between school, sports, clubs, and other responsibilities you may miss these opportunities to let them know how you feel. Send them a quick text. They already have their phone in their hand anyway! 📱   It may just brighten their day. 🌞 Share messages of love openly and often. It may sound corny, but anything parents can do to practice communicating is good. Reaching out frequently lets your kids know that you love them even if they roll their eyes when you say it. Here are some ideas to let your kids know you love them every day. Ideas for parents to show love and support. Texts are something kids will always read; whether they admit it or not. Here are some things you can say. Download these and other ideas to make your home a safe place for communication.

Photo of a young man with a cloud of vape smoke covering his face
Parenting Tips, Parents, Uncategorized, Vaping

Vaping: Facts, Fiction, and Valuable Information for Parents

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“Not my kid.” “I would know.”  “We don’t allow smoking in the house.” Not a Fad You may have thought vaping was a fading fad, one that had not affected your family. Fact: A recent survey of nearly 44,000 students in the United States indicated a dramatic rise in the use of e-cigarettes. In 2018, 37% of 12th graders surveyed reported vaping, up from 28% the previous year. This rise in usage of e-cigarettes shows that not only is vaping not a fad, but it’s a problem that may be getting worse. So, what can you do about it? First, arm yourself with the facts.  Fact: Any usage of e-cigarettes is unsafe for persons of any age Fact: E-cigarettes may contain nicotine, a highly addictive chemical that can impact brain development in kids Fact: People who use e-cigarettes may be more likely to become cigarette smokers later A Dangerous Habit Your children, especially your teenagers, and pre-teens, may think they are invincible. Fiction: Vape juice or e-juice is just harmless “water vapor” and vaping is not as harmful as smoking cigarettes. The truth, these “juices” may contain nicotine, chemical-based flavorings, and other harmful substances. Your kids may think these substances are safe due to marketing, fun-sounding flavors, and other misconceptions. They are also very prone to peer pressure. They may even think the billows of smoke exhaled by some e-cigarettes look “cool”. Whatever the motive, kids can be attracted to this type of behavior especially if their friends are doing it.   Fiction: Vape juice is just harmful water vapor Fiction: Vaping is not harmful like smoking cigarettes Fiction: Vaping tools cannot be used to inhale marijuana   E-cigarettes or vaping pods can vary greatly in size, shape, and design. Some may look like traditional cigarettes, many look like marijuana pipes, but the most popular designs, including those from manufacturers like JUUL, look like normal everyday devices your kids have in their backpacks every day such as pens, highlighters or USB sticks. Parents, teachers, and other adults may not even notice these items, even if hidden in plain sight.  Talk To Your Kids Now, before you rummage through your kids’ room, emptying out their backpacks, and going through their drawers to inspect every pen, USB stick and other electronics you may find. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. There are some things to try first to prevent your child from trying vaping.  Be Intentional Start by being clear and intentional with your family’s values. If your children know that smoking, vaping, or drug use is an unacceptable behavior and that it is harmful to their health and development they may be less likely to try it. Let them know you love them, are concerned with their well-being and arm them with the facts above. Parenting purposefully with an intentional approach not only lets your child know what is important to your family but why those values are important for their well-being.  Focus on Their Strengths Next, be aware of their strengths and have open, honest conversations with them. For example, if you see someone vaping, lean into their strength of curiosity. They may have questions about the behavior and may even think it looks cool. Letting them ask questions they may have about any topic will help you understand what they know and don’t know about it and provide you powerful insight into their perspective on the behavior.  Let them use their strength of judgment to examine everything they know about vaping. They may have heard that vaping helps people quit smoking. While this may be the case for some users, make sure they understand that vape juice may contain the exact same harmful substances and cigarettes. They may conclude that swapping one bad behavior for another isn’t for them.  While you’re focused on their strengths, this is a great opportunity to build their strengths of bravery, social intelligence, and leadership, by having a frank discussion about peer pressure. They may feel pressure from friends to try vaping, smoking, or to engage in other dangerous behaviors. It can be difficult for kids to say no to their friends for fear of being ridiculed and left out. The good news is, by teaching them to be brave, empowering them to navigate a variety of social situations, an encouraging them to be leaders, you are building in them resilience that can help them stand up to peer pressure. “No, thank you. Vaping isn’t for me. That’s just as bad as smoking you know? Let’s play Fortnite instead.”  Be Mindful Finally, make sure you are parenting mindfully, being present, fully engaged, and accepting in the moment. In today’s busy world it can be difficult to really take the time to be with your children, but it’s so important. When you are actively listening to your children and involved in their lives you reduce the likelihood of them turning to destructive behaviors such as vaping.  Citations and Resources https://beechacres.org/natural-strength-parenting/ https://www.stepupanderson.org https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/basic_information/e-cigarettes/Quick-Facts-on-the-Risks-of-E-cigarettes-for-Kids-Teens-and-Young-Adults.html https://newsinhealth.nih.gov/2019/02/vaping-rises-among-teens https://www.prevention-first.org

Photo of a young boy with a red Santa hat covering the majority of his face while he frowns
Parenting Tips, Parents

Help Your Anxious Kids Navigate Social Situations This Holiday Season

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Navigating different social scenarios can be challenging for kids, especially around the holidays. With all of the school pageants, family events, and holiday parties, this time of year can be stressful for kids (and moms and dads!). Remember, it can be difficult for kids to be around strangers or even family members they rarely see. The holiday party season is a great time to talk to your children about the strength of “social intelligence”; knowing how to fit into different social situations comfortably. Here are some tips to help them cope with potentially stressful situations. Talk to them ahead of each event. Let them know who will be there, how long you plan to stay, and what to expect. Point out their other strengths (humor, curiosity, bravery) and discuss how they may use those to navigate different scenarios. Be mindful of your child’s personality. They may be “the life of the party” and be very comfortable in large groups, or they may be shy and more reserved in these settings. Being the familiar face and helping set them at ease is essential. The holidays should be a time to celebrate and enjoy your time together. A little thoughtful planning, mindful awareness, and focus on strengths can help everyone enjoy the festivities.

Photo of a 4 person family sitting together on a couch
Anxiety, Mental Health, Natural Strength Parenting™

How To Talk To Your Kids About Mental Health; A Complete Guide For Parents

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How To Talk To Your Kids About Mental Health 1 in 5 children lives with a serious, diagnosable mental illness. 1 in 5. Think about your child’s friends, their class, and their school. That’s a lot of kids. It’s never been more important to be able to speak openly and honestly about mental health with your children. Fortunately, today’s parents are more open to discussing these important issues than previous generations. So, you’re open to discussing mental health with your child, but how do you do it? Where do you start? As with most essential topics, start at the beginning. Talk with your children about their feelings, focus on their strengths, and most importantly listen to what they have to say. Here are some tips from our parenting experts to get the conversation started at any age and to keep it going. Preschool It’s never too early to begin talking to your child about mental health. For your younger children, keep it simple and speak in terms and contexts that they will be able to understand. Preschool-age children are likely not just going to tell you how they feel, but they may express their feelings in a variety of ways. Look for their clues and engage them when you see them expressing different emotions. Use these clues as an opportunity for you to help them understand their feelings as they are first experiencing them and help them navigate their reactions to those emotions. What to ask. And what to say to your preschooler. What causes you to have butterflies in your stomach? This feeling of anxiety or nervousness is an easy one for children to recognize as it manifests itself physically. Help them identify what causes these feelings and help them cope with it by facing their feelings head-on. Where do your feelings come from? Helping your children understand where their feelings come from, how and why they react to certain experiences and stimuli, can help them begin to work out what to do with those emotions. Who can you talk to if your feelings get to be too much? Let your children know that you are there for them always. But also teach them to establish trust with other key adults in their lives. Grandparents, aunts, uncles, teachers, mentors, close friends, and doctors and therapists should be recognized as trusted people that they can turn to discuss their feelings. What are some ways you can calm down/relax/feel better/control your feelings? However, you phrase it, making sure that your children understand basic coping techniques at an early age is important. It may be quiet time in their room, a certain song or playlist, drawing or coloring, or even snuggling with mom or dad. Once your children know they have a way to deal with their feelings, they are starting to build resilience. Use media and daily experiences to normalize conversations about reacting to specific emotions. After watching a movie, TV show, or YouTube video together discuss how the characters interacted with each other and dealt with their feelings. Elementary School By the time your child is in elementary school, their personalities are well established, they’ve probably made some strong friendships and they are full of emotions. Often, these emotions will come as unexpected outbursts that may catch you off guard! That’s OK. They are learning to express their feelings, and you can be there to guide them. Linking their feelings and how they express them to their strengths is key at this age to identify and build their unique strengths and build resiliency. What to say to your kids when they are in elementary school. Make a feelings thermometer Kids at this age can understand things when they are presented to them visually. Giving them a way to express and understand how they are feeling visually can help them start to manage those emotions. Have your child interview others about their feelings and how they cope. Hopefully, while your child was younger, you helped them identify key adults (including yourself!) that they can talk to about their feelings. An interview with one of these trusted persons can help your child see that everyone deals with changing emotions and can give them insight into how others cope. Ask your child, “Is it okay to feel; sad, embarrassed, guilty, shame, happy, joy, lonely, anger?” Normalize their feelings. No matter what they are. Forget the notion that boys don’t cry and eliminate the concept of shame from your daughter’s vocabulary. All emotions are valid, and your child is going to feel ALL of the feels. Sometimes in the same day! Make sure they understand it is OK to not be OK all the time. And remind them that you are there for them. What does it feel like when you get nervous? Those butterflies in their stomach aren’t going to go anywhere anytime soon. As they get older, they may encounter more things that cause them to be nervous. New teachers, new school, new friends, new team, homework. Managing their nervousness and making sure it doesn’t explode into full-blown panic is a skill that they can continue to develop their entire lives. Who are three people are in can trust with your thoughts/ feelings? As they get older, your children may feel more comfortable discussing things with their friends. That’s fine, but make sure those relationships stay healthy and make sure to keep yourself in the loop. Narrowing down a circle of trusted people ensures them that they always have someone to talk to you. Junior High and High School   Teenagers. Am I right? You thought they could throw a tantrum when they were toddlers? That’s nothing to the depth of emotions you’ll see as they (hopefully) mature into young adults. Pre-teens, tweens, and teenagers are different from your younger kids as they are dealing with far greater and far more pressure than ever before. Mix in challenging physical changes and ever more complex relationships, and you’ll quickly find that discussing

Photo of a man sitting on a bench while talking to a young girl
Anxiety, Mental Health, Natural Strength Parenting™, Parenting Tips, Parents

How To Talk To Your Kids About Mental Health; Speaking To Your High Schooler

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How To Talk To Your Kids About Mental Health 1 in 5 children lives with a serious, diagnosable mental illness. 1 in 5. Think about your child’s friends, their class, their school. That’s a lot of kids. It’s never been more important to be able to speak openly and honestly about mental health with your children. Fortunately, today’s parents are more open to discussing these important issues that previous generations. So, you’re open to discussing mental health with your child, but how do you do it? Where do you start? As with most essential topics, start at the beginning. Talk with your children about their feelings, focus on their strengths, and, most importantly listen to what they have to say. Here are some tips from our parenting experts to start the conversation with your teen. Junior High and High School   Teenagers. Am I right? You thought they could throw a tantrum when they were toddlers? That’s nothing to the depth of emotions you’ll see as they (hopefully) mature into young adults. Pre-teens, tweens, and teenagers are different from your younger kids as they are dealing with far greater and far more pressure than ever before. Mix in challenging physical changes and ever more complex relationships, and you’ll quickly find that discussing mental health with your teenagers is critically important. With teen suicide at an all-time high, there has never been a better reason to talk, and listen to, your kids.  What to say to your kids as they sprint toward adulthood. Find creative ways other than talking to express their feelings. The bottom line is sometimes your teen is just not going to want to talk about how they are feeling. That can be OK on occasion as long as they have some way to express themselves. Encourage journaling, painting, music, drawing, dancing, anything artistic builds on their strength of creativity and can help them manage their emotions even when they don’t feel like talking. Ask questions when they are feeling fine. Mental health is just like physical health. Sometimes you feel good, and other times, not so much. Having conversations around their positive emotions and what makes them feel good, reinforces those good feelings, and helps prepare them to cope with the bad. Ask them questions that help you gauge their sadder emotions. Understanding if your child feels like they do not have a way to express their feelings, or don’t have someone to talk to is critical. Hopefully, when they were younger, you established key adults in their lives that they can go to. Ask them, “Do you ever feel completely alone?” or “Do you ever feel like no one understands you?” If the answer is yes, reinforce that you are there for them and reiterate everyone else in their lives that care for them as well. A mental health assessment may help you understand if a more therapeutic approach is necessary here. Talk to them about the stressors and pressures in their lives. Kids are busier now than ever. And the pressure they feel, whether it’s from you, a teacher or coach, or even themselves, is greater than ever. Stay involved. Talk to your children daily over dinner and understand what is going on in their lives. If homework, an after-school job, or college pressures are getting to be too much, intervene with coping methods to help them get back on track. A little mindfulness, some breathing exercises, yoga, or even just a walk outdoors can help ease their stress Monitor their media consumption. Look, you know your kid is staring at their phone all day every day. But do you know what they are staring at. This generation is growing up in a culture and with a comfort around technology that you probably don’t have. It can be hard to keep up. The reality is it’s far too easy for them to slip in a digital rabbit hole of inappropriate content, messaging that doesn’t align with your family’s values, and cyberbullying. Be aware of what they are doing online and be proactive. Ask if they know people who struggle with anxiety or depression and how they manage it? Be prepared for the answer to this question to be yes. Your child likely knows someone that is dealing with something. They may learn coping skills from their friends, but this is an opportunity to gain insight into how they are feeling about anxiety or depression. Listen to them and seek help if necessary. How long is it okay to be sad…. 1 minute, 1 hour, 1 day, 100 days? Trying to gauge your child understanding of sadness can open up a real conversation about mental health. Feelings should come and go. Again, like physical feelings, emotional feelings can be good and bad and can and should change with experiences and because of your environment. It’s when those not so great feeling emotions hang around for a little too long that you may need to be concerned. Talking with your children early, often, and continuously about their mental well-being is so essential. Share these tips with fellow parents and let us know which strategies worked best for your family. Check out our complete guide to talking to your child about mental health at any age. Learn more about discussing mental health with your preschooler. Learn more about discussing mental health with your child in elementary school. Learn more about discussing mental health with your teens and high schoolers. Looking to go further? Check out Natural Strength Parenting To Go! These text-based courses from our parenting experts help you get the most out of Natural Strength Parenting™ with easy-to-implement parenting strategies. Get started today!

Photo of a loving mother and child holding hands while talking and sitting on sofa
Anxiety, Back To School, Mental Health, Natural Strength Parenting™

How To Talk To Your Kids About Mental Health; Tips For Speaking With Your Child In Elementary School

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How To Talk To Your Kids About Mental Health 1 in 5 children lives with a serious, diagnosable mental illness. 1 in 5. Think about your child’s friends, their class, their school. That’s a lot of kids. It’s never been more important to be able to speak openly and honestly about mental health with your children. Fortunately, today’s parents are more open to discussing these important issues that previous generations. So, you’re open to discussing mental health with your child, but how do you do it? Where do you start? As with most essential topics, start at the beginning. Talk with your children about their feelings, focus on their strengths, and most importantly listen to what they have to say. Here are some tips from our parenting experts to get the conversation started with your child in elementary school. We also shared how to talk to your preschooler and we’ll help you keep the conversation going with tips on speaking to your child into junior high and high school. Elementary School By the time your child is in elementary school, their personalities are well established, they’ve probably made some strong friendships and they are full of emotions. Often, these emotions will come as unexpected outbursts that may catch you off guard! That’s OK. They are learning to express their feelings, and you can be there to guide them. Linking their feelings and how they express them to their strengths is key at this age to identify and build their unique strengths and build resiliency. What to say to your kids when they are in elementary school. Make a feelings thermometerhttps://copingskillsforkids.com/blog/2016/4/27/making-a-feelings-thermometer Kids at this age can understand things when they are presented to them visually. Giving them a way to express and understand how they are feeling visually can help them start to manage those emotions. Have your child interview others about their feelings and how they cope. Hopefully, while your child was younger, you helped them identify key adults (including yourself!) that they can talk to about their feelings. An interview with one of these trusted persons can help your child see that everyone deals with changing emotions and can give them insight into how others cope. Ask your child, “Is it okay to feel; sad, embarrassed, guilty, shame, happy, joy, lonely, anger?” Normalize their feelings. No matter what they are. Forget the notion that boys don’t cry and eliminate the concept of shame from your daughter’s vocabulary. All emotions are valid, and your child is going to feel ALL of the feels. Sometimes in the same day! Make sure they understand it is OK to not be OK all the time. And remind them that you are there for them. What does it feel like when you get nervous? Those butterflies in their stomach aren’t going to go anywhere anytime soon. As they get older, they may encounter more things that cause them to be nervous. New teachers, new school, new friends, new team, homework. Managing their nervousness and making sure it doesn’t explode into full-blown panic is a skill that they can continue to develop their entire lives. Who are three people are in can trust with your thoughts/ feelings? As they get older, your children may feel more comfortable discussing things with their friends. That’s fine, but make sure those relationships stay healthy and make sure to keep yourself in the loop. Narrowing down a circle of trusted people ensures them that they always have someone to talk to you. Talking with your children early, often, and continuously about their mental well-being is so essential. Share these tips with fellow parents and let us know which strategies worked best for your family. Check out our complete guide to talking to your child about mental health at any age. Learn more about discussing mental health with your preschooler. Learn more about discussing mental health with your child in elementary school. Learn more about discussing mental health with your teens and high schoolers. Looking to go further? Check out Natural Strength Parenting To Go! These text-based courses from our parenting experts help you get the most out of Natural Strength Parenting™ with easy to implement parenting strategies. Get started today!

Photo of a little girl reading with father on the couch
Anxiety, Back To School, Mental Health, Natural Strength Parenting™, Parenting Tips, Parents

How To Talk To Your Kids About Mental Health; Tips For Talking To Your Preschooler

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How To Talk To Your Kids About Mental Health 1 in 5 children lives with a serious, diagnosable mental illness. 1 in 5. Think about your child’s friends, their class, their school. That’s a lot of kids. It’s never been more important to be able to speak openly and honestly about mental health with your children. Fortunately, today’s parents are more open to discussing these important issues that previous generations. So, you’re open to discussing mental health with your child, but how do you do it? Where do you start? As with most essential topics, start at the beginning. Talk with your children about their feelings, focus on their strengths, and most importantly listen to what they have to say. Here are some tips from our parenting experts to get the conversation started with your preschooler. We’ll also share how to keep the conversation going with tips on speaking to your child in elementary school and into junior high and high school. Preschool It’s never too early to begin talking to your child about mental health. For your younger children, keep it simple and speak in terms and contexts that they will be able to understand. Preschool-age children are likely not just going to tell you how they feel, but they may express their feelings in a variety of ways. Look for their clues and engage them when you see them expressing different emotions. Use these clues as an opportunity for you to help them understand their feelings as they are first experiencing them and help them navigate their reactions to those emotions. What to ask. And what to say to your preschooler. What causes you to have butterflies in your stomach? This feeling of anxiety or nervousness is an easy one for children to recognize as it manifests itself physically. Help them identify what causes these feelings and help them cope with it by facing their feelings head-on. Where do your feelings come from? Helping your children understand where their feelings come from, how and why they react to certain experiences and stimuli, can help them begin to work out what to do with those emotions. Who can you talk to if your feelings get to be too much? Let your children know that you are there for them always. But also teach them to establish trust with other key adults in their lives. Grandparents, aunts, uncles, teachers, mentors, close friends, and doctors and therapists should be recognized as trusted people that they can turn to discuss their feelings. What are some ways you can calm down/relax/feel better/control your feelings? However, you phrase it, making sure that your children understand basic coping techniques at an early age is important. It may be quiet time in their room, a certain song or playlist, drawing or coloring, or even snuggling with mom or dad. Once your children know they have a way to deal with their feelings, they are starting to build resilience. Use media and daily experiences to normalize conversations about reacting to specific emotions. After watching a movie, TV show, or YouTube video together discuss how the characters interacted with each other and dealt with their feelings. Talking with your children early, often, and continuously about their mental well-being is so essential. Share these tips with fellow parents and let us know which strategies worked best for your family. Check out our complete guide to talking to your child about mental health at any age. Learn more about discussing mental health with your preschooler. Learn more about discussing mental health with your child in elementary school. Learn more about discussing mental health with your teens and high schoolers. Looking to go further? Check out Natural Strength Parenting To Go! These text-based courses from our parenting experts help you get the most out of Natural Strength Parenting™ with easy-to-implement parenting strategies. Get started today!

White Back to School Quick Tips BAPC graphic with a backpack on it
Back To School, Beech Acres, character strengths, Natural Strength Parenting™, Parenting Tips, Parents, Schools

Back To School Quick Tips!

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Back to School Quick Tips Try a few of these tips at home to help your family successfully transition back to your school year routine. Let us know which ones worked for you! State An Intention Start by setting an intention with your child for the new school year. Ask, “what can you do to make this year your best yet?” Get curious with them and ask “What do you need from me to succeed?” Then make sure to build in accountability. “What steps will you take to succeed?” “How will you know if the intention you set is working? How will your experience at school be better?” Build On Thier Strengths Acknowledge your child’s fear and anxiety, and offer the idea that these feelings subside as you become familiar with what was once ‘new’. Every person has 24 character strengths inside them. You can discover your family’s strengths for free by taking the VIA Character Strengths Survey located on our website. Take A Mindful Moment Actively listen to their concerns and let them know you are listening. “I hear that you are worried about your first day of school, but you smiled when you talked about seeing your friends again.” Take Time For Yourself Set an intention for yourself to be prepared and ready to help your kids succeed! Lean into your own strengths of Love, Fairness, Judgment, Leadership, and Perseverance. Take a moment for yourself. Sit outside and take a moment to Appreciate the Beauty of these final summer days.

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