Univision.com / Dr. Gail Gross

Teach your Children the Virtue of Silence

September 10, 2015

What mother has not ever felt mad by the noise at home? Let’s face it: teenage children, our children are usually screaming. They talk loudly, yelling while playing stick, put loud music, use the TV in the background and they even love banging around. How we’d love to appreciate silence.  It’s time to teach their value.   

Inundated by noise. Although sometimes we do not notice, our children are bombarded all day by the sound of the phone, music, TV … Suddenly, the background noise becomes the norm.The problem is that it is almost impossible to make clear decisions without the stimulus away from it all, to hear the inner voice said Gail Gross, a psychologist specializing in child and family development. 

Negative consequences. Children are particularly vulnerable to stress it generates excess noise. They may suffer physical and emotional harm, warning published by the World Health Organization (WHO, for its acronym in English). In this sense, they can suffer from hormonal problems and blood pressure, sleep disorders and to their ability to learn. 

The value of silence. Unlike noise, this can help your children to heal the mind, sooth your soul and grow to be identified. Then target these strategies proposed by Gross, to instill the benefits of silence: 

1. Explain the rules, so they know clearly what you expect of them and what the consequences are if not respected. For example, you can schedule an hour each day quietly at home, in which all family members make their activities in silence.

2. Be consistent with your expectations and, instead of focusing on the bad, offer ‘feedback’ and positive reinforcement, so they can go on changing old habits.

3. Translate wisely the importance of silence, so they can understand why it is positive to adopt new ways.

4. Teach stillness techniques to which they can refer when needed. Especially it promotes the practice of breathing, meditation or yoga, which help calm the mind and think more clearly under stress.

5. Make it fun by proposing, for example, a quiet game or competition. 

6. Introduce them in the practice of silent walking meditation, as connected with the environment and easier to understand they are part of the entire natural world. 

7. Use an empathetic to hold family exchanges about these techniques to promote silent process, and its consequences (which include, among other things, stop every so noise sources such as mobile, computer and TV). To feel they have control over the situation, your children will be more likely to participate in the silent moments.

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