Starting the year with kindness for your young person and for yourself
“If my kid does not go to college right away after high school, they are going to be left behind by their peers.”
“My kid doesn’t have an summer internship lined up. I can’t get them to see how important it is have something to do this summer. Everybody else’s kid is applying right now!”
“If my kid doesn’t take AP Calculus right now they are headed nowhere. Every other kid in their friend circle is taking AP Calculus.”
“Why can’t my kid act as mature as the neighbor’s kids. It’s so embarrassing when the do _______________.”
When our kids seem out of sync with their peers, it brings up anxieties about what their future holds and it can also bring up anxiety about how our parenting will be perceived by others.
January is a time for reflection and reset.
The start of the year offers us the opportunity to try something new and start newer, healthier patterns.
In the same way that we set New Year resolutions to get in better shape, what are our intentions for how we will support our children this year and for how we will nurture ourselves during the process?
Start with a simple act of kindness for your child and yourself.
When you start feeling those anxious thoughts about your child start to build…
Gather them up in one big breadth through your nose as you count to four
As you hold your breadth for a moment acknowledge to yourself that you are holding worried and anxious thoughts
Now release them in one drawn out big exhale through your mouth as you count to four
As you inhale deeply (inhaling through your nose as you count again to four) remind yourself of the last time your child made you laugh
And as you slowly exhale through your mouth as you count to four, release that memory of your child and share it with the world
Repeat four times
The antidote to anxiety and worry is joy. In the many stressful moments of parenting we will experience in the coming year, let’s not forget the joy that our kids bring into our lives.
