The old adage goes, kids don’t come with an instruction manual. Parenting is hard, and as your child grows, it can be hard to build a strong relationship with them. As they grow and change, how you parent and the rules you enforce must change as well, which can lead to struggle. Kidology Inc knows that child development begins with parent-child relationships. Let’s look at the five qualities that build strong relationships between parents and their kids.

Safety and Security

For a child to build strong relationships with the people around them, they first need to feel safe and secure. From infancy, a child learns to depend on their parents. As long as the parents consistently work to fulfill their needs, providing comfort, warmth, food, and stimulation, they can develop the trust that forms the bedrock of parent-child relationships.

For some families, providing for basic needs can be hard. Fortunately, states like Pennsylvania have food, medical, and financial assistance for families in need.

Unconditional Love and Acceptance

It’s important for children to know that their parents will love and accept them unconditionally. This means that support and emotional expression are not tied to behavior. As children learn to trust that their parents will provide for them and care for them, they need to know that there are no “but ifs” that follow.

Communication

Just as children need to feel secure in their relationships with their parents, they also need to communicate with them. Parents don’t need to tell their children everything. However, they should listen and answer their child’s questions. Parents should share thoughts and feelings to help children understand that they can in turn, talk about their thoughts and feelings.

Respect

While we have the idea that children should respect their parents, parents must understand that they have to demonstrate respect as well. Good communication is one way to demonstrate respect. Accepting them for who they are is another way. When as parents, we demonstrate what respect is, children learn how to show respect in turn.

Flexibility

Children grow, change, and develop quickly. It’s important that parents understand that these changes can be small or drastic and sometimes even confusing to their children. While flexibility can seem chaotic, especially for parents who were themselves raised in strict homes, what flexibility means is just being able to adjust to circumstances. That can mean staying open to new approaches to parenting.

Does Your Child Need Behavior Therapy?

If you’re noticing any of the behaviors that we’ve talked about or if you’re doctor has suggested behavior therapy, contact us to set up an appointment. We will help match your child with one of our behavioral experts.