No matter how liberal you have become in your thoughts, youth suicidal attempts are on the increase. The biggest cause of youth deaths here is due to suicide, followed by Road accidents and tuberculosis.
A Teen, who is as fresh as daisy, as keen as mustard, suddenly takes a huge and punishing step. Wonder why?
Difficulty to cope up with others in studies, needing to belong to their tribe, the parental pressure, or demand of space for freedom.
Research shows that the number of student suicides is as high as 1 student per hour in India. This points to the importance of training your children for life and stresses the need to teach them how to overcome adversity in their life.
No matter how liberal we have become in our thoughts, youth suicidal attempts are on the increase. How do we stop this? Share on XAt some point in life, your children will be faced with adversity such as sadness, opposition, difficulty, frustration, or stress.
The reason may be any; choices, actions, accidents, illness, and relationships.
Handling and overcoming these unavoidable adversities of life starts at home and is one of the important Life skills Parents should possess.
How to overcome adversity- 6 ways you can prepare your kids for bad patches in Life
1. Help them fight the Fear of Failure
Each one of us fears failure but some do manage to overcome and win over this fear. I too was a tough child who used to tear apart my own drawings if they did not meet my own expectations.
I once said, “I do not accept defeat from anyone”. It may be arrogance back then but now I see that it was ignorance.
Overcoming this fear wasn’t easy and it took the help of my Mother to make me accept and understand the importance of failure.
Teach your Kids ways to accept failures so that they will be able to have new experiences and easily cross the ladder to growth.
2. Help Them to Express and Deal with Emotions
At first, let your kids identify their emotions and ask them how they are feeling. Do not advise them to suppress their emotions but rather help them find a constructive way to vent it out.
You are the first person whom your kids count on, so give them the freedom to express their emotions. Ask them to discuss it with you or if they feel shy, ask them to write about it.
There were many times I asked my Mother “Why me” and every time she calmly replied “Because you are special. God wants you to perform better than this or get better than this”.
When your children throw tantrums, handle it with care, and try to find the reason behind it. Once they have calmed down, explain to them that feelings come and go.
This will help them to deal with mood swings, bad days, and depression which is a major cause of suicide.
DO NOT let them stuff these emotions inside to be blown up one day.
3. Help them to look at Life with fresh perspective
Teach your kids to be resilient and rise above bad patches in Life.
Make them believe that these not-so-good experiences help them start fresh and better.
If they want good experiences, they need to cover the short gravel-filled distance of bad ones”.
Explain to them that these adversities (Rejection, Failure, Death, loss, or tragedy) are part of Life and should not be resisted, instead, they should learn to face them and deal with them.
Teach them not to lose Hope and Faith; that “Life is a one time Gift”.
A one-liner my Mother used to repeat to me each time I got discouraged was “You can rise again and get everything you want but not Life.”
4. Prepare them for Setbacks
You will not always be there to support your kids when they feel low or left out. So prepare your children to manage setbacks and look at failures as an opportunity to prepare them for the future.
As Parents, we always feel happy to fulfill our kids demands but let them wait for it. Let them learn the art of Delayed Gratification.
For example; If your child wants a new big toy, ask him to wait till his birthday or any nearby event.
Even if something doesn’t work out, let your kids learn to choose alternatives. Suppose if a picnic plan has been canceled, ask them to think about other exciting things they can do- i.e. Plan B.
5. Accept their Differences and Support Them
Do not compare your own childhood to what your kids are going through today. It makes them angry and they may hide things from you in the future.
Time has changed a lot since you were a child and so has problems. Blame Social media, the pressure of education, or consciousness about their body image. The truth is your kids have much to deal with today.
MUST READ: Why Social Media is not Responsible for Ruining Your Self Esteem
So Support them with words and actions even if they fail.
6. Be a Role Model
Most importantly, be a role model to your kids when it comes to handling difficult situations of Life.
Express your problems to them and when you are reacting to issues, keep the tone positive. Do not show anxiety or panic.
For example: When you did not get an expected promotion at work, use phrases such as “No issues, maybe next time” or “I will work harder”.
When you make a mistake, do not feel ashamed to say Sorry. It will help them accept their own mistakes in the future.
Note: As Parents, you should keep an eye to look for any signs of bullying, teasing or body-shaming.
About the Author
She is a woman with a passion to explore new things, embrace new changes and enjoys running around her Toddler. She shares her Parenting and other Self-improvement stories at  lifethroughmybioscope.com.
A self-proclaimed Minimalist who documents her Minimalist journey at http://comebackminimalist.blogspot.com/
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