Understanding and managing emotions is essential for your well-being and your child’s development. And while it’s normal to experience negative emotions such as fear, anger, anxiety, insecurity, and jealousy, these emotions can have a similar hold on your children. This podcast episode with Dr. Essam Daod will teach parents how to deal with negative emotions in children.
Meet Essam Daod
Dr. Essam Daod is a mental health expert and a trained psychiatrist and psychotherapist who provides emergency mental health interventions to displaced children and their families so they can transform their trauma into a source of growth.
Essam grew up in Israel in a small Arab Palestinian village in Galilee. In 2015, he flew to Greece for what became a humanitarian rescue mission, where he co-founded Humanity Crew and has been working with refugees ever since.
Currently, he is an avid refugee mental health practitioner and researcher who has spoken at countless conferences and media outlets worldwide, advocating for the importance of mental health support for child refugees and people in crises. Last 2018, he became a TED Fellow and a WHO mental health expert team member. And in 2021, his work was featured in the docuseries, The Me You Can’t See, produced by Oprah Winfrey and Prince Harry for Apple TV.
About the episode
This podcast episode hosted by Lu Ngo started when Essam shared his favorite book, then he discussed how the parents’ role is of utmost importance in supporting children with their negative emotions. He said that parents don’t have to act or give interventions for negative emotions; if it goes beyond their control, then it’s better to seek professional help. Also, parents should take care of themselves first; they need to ensure that they’re in good condition since children absorb and copy what they see in their surroundings.
According to Essam, a child’s ability to understand and manage emotions develops over time, so parents must let the children find the solution themselves. And he added that parents shouldn’t be handling their children’s problems all the time; this will make the children feel independent.
In addition, he advised that parents should go out together with no distractions. During this time, you can discuss with your child the particular negative emotion they are showing, label it for them, and talk about it.
In conclusion
Your role as a parent is crucial. Children can absorb what they see; therefore, parents must learn to regulate and manage emotions. And keep in mind that family time is necessary for a child’s development.
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