Got Feelings?

Of course you do!  But are you able to identify, manage, and recognize your feelings as well as the feelings of others? And if you say yes, which I hope you do, are you teaching and modeling these skills for your children?  It's very important that they learn to acknowledge and accept all of their feelings and understand the situations or events that triggered those feelings.

Why is it important to know your feelings?  Because accurately identifying your feelings  allows you to better work through them.  Self-awareness is a life skill that allows us to accurately asses our feelings, interests, strengths, and values; it leads to self-confidence.  That’s  a very powerful attribute for children and adults. 

I frequently work with kids who aren’t able to distinguish between frustration, anxiety,  jealousy, or irritation, to name a few.  Big feelings are often channeled directly into anger.  Anger is reactive, and can let off steam,  but not productive in solving or resolving the situations that caused the feeling.  Channeling an emotion into a reaction like anger does not provide understanding, control, or growth also known as self-management.  We all want control, to be in charge of ourselves and to learn from our experiences.  

Knowledge (self- awareness) = self-confidence 
Control (self-management) =overcoming obstacles, perseverance, and "grit"

When a child can identify they are jealous, sad, disappointed, nervous, insecure, and other difficult emotions, they have the power to communicate those strong feelings and discuss with either their parents or teacher.  The adults  then have an opportunity to help the child work through the situation, problem solve, and ultimately gain the skills to work through the situation.  This builds understanding, compassion, and perspective taking.  We want our children to build a good sense of self and strong understanding of others and how we fit in within the community of family, friends, and classmates.

Empower your child to identify and understand their feelings.  It is a vibrant, exciting, and colorful world!