Growing up, there were a lot of things that were hidden from me, all in the name of protecting my little heart. This was the case with some friends of mine as they also realised at older ages that some of the things were sugar-coated when they would ask questions.
This is no way wrong, but studies advise that parents need to be open with children from an early age, as that is said to strengthen trust and create good communication between you as a parent and the child.
Below we look at some of the things parents often hide or sugarcoat when their kids talk about a subject, or ask questions about it.
Death – as part of life, death is imminent and will affect us when those we love and care about leave us. Romper an information hub for mothers to navigate motherhood adds, “Chances are, at some point, your child will be exposed to death, whether it’s a pet, a grandparent, a friend, another family member, or someone else. Though it might be tempting to keep it hidden, particularly if they’re young, you might be better off having the conversation.” The publication adds that the half-truths create communication problems that may lead to trust being compromised.
Topics related to sex – for parents like me, a sex related question is an uncomfortable topic. The above-mentioned information hub says no matter how you feel uncomfortable other topics may be the right thing to do is to not hide things from your child. These days children are very smart the publication suggests answering them truthfully even when they ask sex related questions.
Adoption – People have different reasons why they do not tell their adopted kids the truth. Most of the time the reasons are to protect the kids feeling, but is that really protecting their feelings? Romper notes that damage can be done, they add, “depending upon the questions that the child asks, you can give further details in a simple language.”
Managing finances – not hiding your finances can benefit your child greatly, especially if you put more effort in teaching them about budgeting, importance of taking care of your debt and many other things they will need later in life. ‘Discuss with them what a credit card is, and how it shouldn’t be used to buy more than you can afford. Explain what interest is and how it works. Navigate them through the importance of savings and setting aside money for the future,” adds SurvivingMomBlog a blog with parenting tips.
Mistakes you’ve made in the past – not hiding some of the mistakes that you’ve made sets the precedent that it is ok to make mistakes as long as you learn from them, Romper adds, “Pretending that you’re perfect and have never made mistakes really isn’t doing your children any favors. Because no one is perfect, when they inevitably make mistakes or fall short, they’ll be left thinking that they’re somehow failing at something, and that’s no good.”
Also see: Compliments to shower your kids with
