Emotions are a fascinating thing. We feel certain emotions during certain experiences, which help guide the way we act in those situations. As adults, dealing with our emotions isn’t easy. However, we more or less know how to handle the emotions that come up during different situations in our lives.
It might seem like something that comes naturally to us at this point, but that wasn’t always the case. We had to start somewhere, and that somewhere was most probably in a place where our emotions confused us or made things difficult to deal with. For all children, this is something they all go through. However, much like you, experiences teach them how to deal with their emotions and how to handle them in the different situations they experience them in.
This skill of knowing how to handle and deal with one’s emotions is called “emotional intelligence,” and it’s something that takes a while to build. What’s more, it takes various experiences and instances of trial and error to get it to a level where your child has a good sense of emotional intelligence. However, there are ways to help them build it and make it as ideal for them as possible. This article will show you ways to do that.
The Importance of Emotional Intelligence
The phrase “emotional intelligence” already gives you a hint on what it is. Taking it from the phrase, you could say it pertains to being smart with your emotions, and that’s basically what it is.
Emotional intelligence pertains to a person’s ability to be able to handle their emotions in a way that is appropriate to the situation they’re in. By having a good sense of emotional intelligence, a person is able to handle their emotions in relation to the situations they find themselves in. For any parent, this is something they’d love for their child to have as it can help them in so many ways.
A child that has a good sense of emotional intelligence will be able to have actions that are guided by their emotions. What’s more, they are able to control their emotions and not let them get out of hand, causing things like tantrums or outbursts. So, you can see why this is important.
How to Help Them Build It
As a mama, helping your child grow up to be the best person they can be is crucial. Among the many things that this entails, helping them build and establish a good sense of emotional intelligence is one of them. Considering that how they turn out as they grow older is significantly dependent on how you raise them, it makes sense that you have a hand in how their emotional intelligence turns out.
With that in mind, what can you do to help them with their sense of emotional intelligence? Well, there are a few simple things that you can do.
Acknowledge Their Emotions
When it comes to helping your child establish their sense of emotional intelligence, one of the first things that you can do as a mama would be to acknowledge their emotions. Acknowledging their emotions is one of the simplest ways you can help. By doing so, you help them know that their feelings are valid and worth recognition.
By acknowledging their emotions, you help them know that whatever it is they’re feeling is valid. Aside from that, you also help them know that all their feelings are also something they should acknowledge as well. This then helps them become more aware of what they feel.
Differentiating and Labeling Them
Once your child begins to acknowledge their emotions, you can then help them differentiate those emotions and then label them. For example, when they feel down because they lost their favorite toy or their friend fought with them, you can help them label that as sadness. When they get ecstatic because they’re going on a play date, you can help them label that as happiness.
By helping them differentiate between the emotions they feel and let them put labels on them, they become more familiar with how those emotions feel during certain situations. They’ll then be able to identify and even verbalize them if they want to talk about it.
Help Them Understand Their Emotions
Once your child has a good grasp of their emotions and is able to identify how they feel, you can then take it a step further and help them understand these emotions. More specifically, you can help them understand why they feel these emotions in certain situations and what they can do about them.
By helping them better understand their emotions, why they come up, and how they can act in relation to them, you teach them how to handle these things better. As a child may get confused and frustrated when they’re faced with an unfamiliar situation, giving them some guidance on how to do it can at least lessen the frustration. In turn, it’ll help them learn how to act more properly when their emotions come up.
Lead By Example
Of course, one of the best ways you can help your child establish their emotional intelligence would be to lead by example. As children are very impressionable, especially when they’re younger, they can pick up on things that you do without you knowing. So, it makes sense to be more aware of how you act, especially in relation to your own emotions.
By leading by example, you at least give them an idea on how they could deal with emotions vis-a-vis the situations they come up. So, by showing them you can handle things like anger properly, you at least give them an idea on how they can do it too. In time, given the right guidance and examples, they’ll be more knowledgeable when dealing with their emotions!
Emotions can be very tricky to deal with as a child, especially if you aren’t all too familiar with them. It takes a while for a child to get used to their emotions and learn how to deal with them. However, this ability to learn how to handle and deal with one’s emotions—also known as emotional intelligence—is something that can be built with the right guidance. As a mama, there’s a lot that you can do to help them have a good sense of emotional intelligence. What’s more, you can do this through several simple ways! So, if you want to help your child establish their sense of emotional intelligence, consider the tips listed in this article.
