Respect and Feelings

Feelings are natural—we can't stop them from happening. We respond to feelings in different ways, sometimes positively and sometimes negatively. By acting responsibly towards our feelings, in both words and actions, we can learn to respect ourselves and others.

Don’t try to ignore emotions or feelings.

They are part of living. It’s difficult for some of us to talk about our feelings. Learning about personal feelings is an important step in building relationships with others. Most people learn to accept feelings, both good and bad.

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 Help your children learn to describe and talk about their feelings. Develop a list of "feeling words" and hang them on the refrigerator. Every time someone in your family "feels" a certain way, write the word or draw the face that best describes it.

Talk about your feelings.

Denying feelings can damage relationships and can build up to the point of losing your temper or other negative behavior. Have you seen an angry person hitting the table or throwing something? These actions never help the situation.

 Thinking that we cannot talk to those we respect about our feelings may cause us to "shut down" emotionally. Talking about personal feelings with friends and family may help us sort out what we feel and why we feel angry. When you understand why you feel a certain way, you can begin to take steps to change things.

 The Bible tells us not to let the sun go down while we are angry. In other words, don’t keep anger inside where it can grow into bitterness. Going to bed angry builds barriers between people and God. This blocks God’s blessings and creates roadblocks in our relationships with others, including our children.

Teach your children to respect others.

As you model behaviors, remind your children what is acceptable by saying, “In our family, we don’t slam the door when we’re angry. We stop, calm down and then talk about what makes us feel upset.” Saying this in a calming voice can help the situation, too.

Use every day events to show children how to respond to feelings in a way that doesn’t hurt others. Teach them that everyone deserves respect and we choose to show respect by our words and actions.Why meet ?

(Adapted from Family Works from the University of IL Extension)

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