Gratitude
A message from the Health and Wellbeing Team
Gratitude
The research is clear: gratitude is a superfood for our physical, emotional, and social wellbeing. According to Robert Emmons, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology at UC Davis, gratitude lowers blood pressure, improves immune function, reduces the risk of depression, anxiety, and builds resilience.
All this is good news for parents! (and teachers). The extract below was taken from The Big Life Journal which has some interesting tips on supporting children to become resilient and confident individuals.
So how do we parent with gratitude and reap the benefits of this important practice for ourselves and our kids? One way is to tweak our words. Each time you’re about to say, “I have to” to, replace it with “I get to”. Notice the profound difference.
“I have to take my daughter to ballet” versus “ I get to take my daughter to ballet”.
“I have to put him to bed” versus “I get to put him to bed”
This easy change makes a huge difference in how we think about our time together.
Another powerful strategy is being aware of the wonderful and likable aspects of your child.
“Parenting gratefully means you often draw to mind your child’s good qualities, and as a result, these become more cognitively salient and they work as memory clues to what you find important.” - Anne Dunlea, psychologist
In difficult and frustrating moments with your kids, recall these qualities to maintain perspective and gratitude for who they truly are.