Has your child started saying “NO” too frequently? Here are some effective parenting tips

As a parent, it's not uncommon to sometimes ask yourself, "Am I doing this right?" especially in situation like you child starts replying “NO” frequently,  like not to stop watching television, will not finish the meal, saying no to study etc. Then the question comes to every parent's mind if this is normal or not or how can we fix this issue, generally parents conclude that his will get fixed with time as the child grew up or it’s a common phenomenon in every house, we are no exception.

Shivani Misri Sadhoo (Psychologist) suggest parents not judge your child’s refusals and before you trying to make your ‘NO’ stronger or violent, think on the following points:-

a.    Avoid disciplining kids when they are hungry or tired: When kids are tired or hungry, they won’t be focused on what you are trying to teach them. Like if your child is tired after coming back from the school and started watching television, at that moment if you tell them to switch off the TV, they will consider your instruction baseless because at that moment the cartoon is providing them a way to ease their mental fatigue. It’s best that you tell them the benefits of sleeping vs. watching TV when they are in a joyful mood.

b.   Appreciate your kid frequently and specifically: Kids really do want to please their parents and they expect positive feedback. We parents often focus a lot of time and energy on pointing out things our kids can improve. It's important to balance those messages with acknowledgements of things kids are already doing well in. 

Plus, it’s important that we praise our kids more specifically. Instead of just saying "Good job!" we should think about what exactly we are appreciating and tell them about it. Like, if they have made a good painting, instead of just saying “wonderful painting” you may add “I really love the way you have drawn the flowers and you have colored the sky”. This will make your child understand they you are seriously appreciating him or her and will respect you more.

c.   Practice positive touch: Research consistently shows that positive touch (e.g. hugs, loving pats, cuddles) is absolutely critical to the children’s development. So take time out every day to give your kids a long hug or a cuddle. If your older child doesn't want to cuddle anymore, you can still give them a loving squeeze on the arm or a pat on the back.