"Actually, children feel the same way as their parents do. The difference is their capability to manage and to express their emotions and stress. Happiness is not static, and it is normal and needs to be felt. We need to be the children's emotional coach while facing our current pandemic," she stressed during an online discussion as quoted on Saturday.
In order for parents to become their children's emotional coach at home, Utami suggested that they can set up a routine with their kids to manage their mental health. She believes any activity done along with parents can offer a sense of safety and comfort to children.
"Do anything together as long as the parents are involved. This is since doing anything with their care giver can make children feel safe and maintain their mental health," Utami stated.
Utami also noted that any activity that can make parents happy is an ideal activity to be done along with their children.
"The activity does not need to be just playing. It can be cooking together, preparing breakfast together, or cleaning up toys together. It is all part of bond building. The upside of having parents at home (during the pandemic) means they have more time to spend with their children together," she affirmed.
The graduate from University of Amsterdam also drew attention to a method called HADIR that parents can apply to help their children manage their emotions.
HADIR encompasses applying a calm approach to the problem, considering that every child's emotions is important, listening without being distracted, remembering to help identify children's emotions, and laying out options, limitations, as well as the solution to the problem.
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Translator: Arnidhya Zhafira, Fadhli Ruhma
Editor: Suharto
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