Yousuf Raza – What can parents do to ensure their childs mental wellbeing

What can parents

do if such things are happening?

The most important thing for parents is communication

with the children.

How do you maintain communication?

So there is a term called emotional literacy.

And emotional literacy means that you are able

to not only express yourself freely, talk about

your feelings and emotions, but also be aware

of the other's feelings and emotions.

So it is very important for parents to

work on that communication channel, good communication with

the children, invest time in it.

And if you are able to have good

communication, that will lead to a good healthy

relationship, a warm relationship, a constructive relationship.

So that when the child gets into problem

and all children and adolescents as they grow

up run into problems.

Well, it's, you know, part of growing up.

You will experiment certain things that you shouldn't

do.

You will get involved in certain activities that

you shouldn't do.

But that's part of growing up.

But if you have a good relationship with

your children and they run into problems, they

will come to you and discuss that.

But if you have a weak relationship, it's

punitive, it's offhand, it's temperamental, it's one based

on power dynamics.

So when the child has a problem, whether

it's from school or with friends, whatever it

is, it won't come to you.

It will get beaten up, scolded, this will

happen, that will happen.

So parents must try and develop as good

a relationship as they can with the children.

And the basis of a good relationship is

always communication.

How can you communicate?

Communication, as you know, is a two-way

street.

So both parties have to know that, children

as well as adults.

This can obviously be supplemented by what are

good child rearing practices, what is respect of

the elders, both in the school and as

well as home.

What does our religion say?

All these things become supplementary.

But the basic thing is that parents are

older, so they have more responsibility.

It's how you can develop a good relationship,

a good healthy relationship, and the basis of

that is communication.

It's very important to emphasize this.