It’s hard enough to break our own bad habits. When it comes to helping our children break theirs, it can seem even more daunting. Well, we listed these Essential Steps to Help Your Child Stop Bad Habits.
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Use gentle reminders
Sometimes, however, a child is either too young to understand or simply not interested in giving up that icky quirk. In this case, ask yourself whether there is an underlying discomfort. Once you’ve talked to your child about breaking the habit, try not to nag. Instead, if you see them doing their habit, come up with a subtle signal to remind them of the replacement option for their habit.
Motivate and reward
Positive reinforcement is key here. Set up a system to reward your little habit-breaker. You can use a sticker chart, but be sure to reward incrementally. For younger children, three days’ worth of success might warrant a bigger prize. If your children are older, you might settle for a week as the marker for a celebration.
Whenever you praise a child for their good manners, they offer you such a winning smile. Use this as a tactic to motivate them to engage in positive habits. Praise them for being on their best behavior and give them a small reward or a star, if you are using a star chart. When they turn to bad habits, ignore them consciously to let them know of your disappointment.
Encouragement and appreciation boost their morale and helps them to do positive things. On the other hand, your disapproval will make them ashamed and guilty. It is an excellent strategy that works on various nasty habits.
Form a Partnership
Another neat method of breaking bad habits is to involve your child in the breaking process. Make him your “partner in crime” as you break into his bad habits and destroy them. You can start this off by asking your child about his bad habit and whether he has faced any embarrassing moments because of them. Then, let him know that from now on both of you will be partners in making sure that the bad habit is finished off. This involvement will give the child a feeling of adventure and will motivate him to get rid of his bad habits – plus, he will learn to contribute ideas and learn what brainstorming is all about!
Take it Slowly and Be Discreet
Oftentimes, kids develop a handful of bad habits together. Don’t try to tackle all of them at once. Take it slowly – one by one. Start with the most damaging one, like lying or bullying, and do your best to eliminate it. Reason and explain cause and effect, consequences of actions, and explain negative behavior from a perspective of consideration. You might think your child is only young, but they surprisingly know and understand a great deal more than we typically believe.
Talk, reason, explain. Don’t shame your kids by discussing their problems in public. It will only make them lose their trust in you. In order to help them, children need to look upon their parents as someone they can depend on. When you respect their privacy and provide a safe, supportive and nurturing environment, they will continue to trust you and will find it easier to confide in you and listen to you.
Come up with a better option
Once you identify what’s behind your child’s habit, come up with options to replace it. If homework makes her nervous, let her squeeze a stress ball instead of chewing her nails. If she needs the comfort of thumb sucking when she gets tired, lay down with her and lovingly hold her hand. What about a child who habitually acts out excitement in a non-acceptable way? Calmly remind him before he gets wound up that biting isn’t an option.
In short, go easy on your kid, and don’t fret too much over unwanted habits that they may pick up over time. Keep educating your child about right and wrong and gently remind them if they continue the bad habit. Remember, you must work through the process together and be comforted that you will emerge at the other end, pleased with the great parenting job you’ve done! After all, each and every parent, do the very best that they can.
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