One of my friends shared an article with me the other day that spoke about when to encourage your child and when to reprimand them. When we answer to their wails and when do we tell them to ‘suck it up’. We cannot raise our kids in one way or the other, I can’t agree enough with that blogger about a balance in parenting.
I would share my own personal experience with you all. I am NOT a helicopter parent. I do not constantly keep a vigil on how my child is spending every second of his life, I don’t even believe that every moment he exists he should ‘add value’ to his life. Sometimes, maybe most, I let him be. I trust him to take a decision about the smallest of things he wants to do, of course with the required knowledge and guidance from me. I want him to be able to develop an instinct.
How much handholding do our kids need?
Every human being has an instinct and if we as parents keep choosing and taking decisions for our children, then how would they be able to develop their own. But there are times when you should be able to decide for your child. To make that distinction of when it is that you let them be and when is it that you step in and decide for them, is parenting. It is difficult.
You don’t want to smother your children with too much attention and make life choices for our neither do you don’t want them to be raised without guidance. I have made some references of things I let him choose for himself and things that I would interfere in, now or later in life.
Please let me know if you agree or disagree with my points or you have an alternative way of looking at this.
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- Srushti Rao
- January 30, 2017
- 1 Comment
I don’t completely agree with your point of view. I think kids need to be guided at every stage until they reach high school, maybe then also. I have two teenagers and I still need to know everything that they are doing.