6 Ways to Model Healthy Relationships to Your Children:
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Be openly physically affectionate by holding hands or giving a hug to your partner while walking together with your children. You are showing them in a non verbal way that you are a united front and enjoy being with each other.
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Joking and laughing with your partner. Children who see their parents having fun together feel happier and more secure at home and are learning a great skill to relax and have less anxiety.
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Doing household chores as a family unit. You are setting a wonderful example as to what it's like to work together as a team and be efficient partners so your children understand responsibility as well as useful cleaning skills.
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Eating and sitting together as a family for meals while having meaningful conversations. Just making a time to sit down and eat and talk to each other helps your children see that a healthy relationship involves listening to each other and sharing information about ourselves in a caring way. They are also learning that what they have to say is valuable and listening to others is just as valuable. This is a beautiful base to learning respect and good communication skills in relationships.
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Going out to dinner and dates alone without the children. Your children are learning that while their parents value their time with their children, they also value cultivating their adult relationship. It is a good message to send to kids that you care about spending time alone together and enjoy each other’s company.
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Fight Fair. If you do get in a situation where you are in conflict with your partner, use respectful words and healthy conflict resolution so your children see that fighting can be healthy learning process in a relationship.
When your children see you acting in such thoughtful and collaborative ways they will interpret these actions as norms in relationships and want those same things for themselves.
Jessica Colon, LCPC is a mental health and play therapist who specializes in working with children, adolescents, and young adults exposed to turbulence and conflict in their homes. For more information, visit: www.jessicacolonlcpc.com