7 common parenting mistakes you may be making without realising their impact

Here are some common mistakes that many parents may make unknowingly and which may have a serious impact on the child's development.

Even though you want to be the perfect parent to ensure your child’s healthy development and well-being, there are some mistakes you may commit unknowingly which can leave a deep impact. We list seven such mistakes that parents should definitely avoid.

1. Be a helicopter parent

For the uninitiated, this parenting style describes parents’ tendency to hover over their child constantly, micromanaging their life. Helicopter parenting can limit your child from developing adulting skills. Loving and supporting your child does not mean you become overprotective, fight battles and make decisions on their behalf, thwarting their individuality in the process.

2. Bully

Parents, often unconsciously, end up criticising or making fun of their child’s weight, complexion or behaviour. You might think you are doing it in jest, but bullying can have serious impact on your child causing anxiety disorders, obsessive behaviour or depression.

3. Compare your child

This is one of the most common parenting mistakes, where parents compare a child to his or her friends or siblings. What we forget in the process is that comparing a child to criticise him or her can impact his self-esteem and make them feel incompetent. Rather than resorting to comparison, track your child’s personal journey of achievements and help him or her improve.

4. Discount your child’s feelings

In the book When Kids Call the Shots: How to Seize Control from Your Darling Bully and Enjoy Parenting Again by Sean Grover, the author and psychotherapist explains, “When your children reveal their feelings and insecurities to you, for goodness sake don’t contradict them, correct them, offer unsolicited advice, or use it as an opportunity to lecture about your experiences…Kids want to feel understood; they want to feel validated by their parents.”

5. Overpraise

While praising and acknowledging your child’s efforts is necessary, research has shown that overpraising your kids can turn them into narcissists and distort an appropriate understanding of right and wrong.

6. Turn a blind eye to learning difficulties

If your child is facing any learning difficulty, address the issue as early as possible instead of labelling them as lazy or unmotivated.

7. Yell

If you think yelling at your child will help you discipline him or her, know that it involves the risk of increased levels anxiety in your child and affects his or her overall development. Such children can grow up to be aggressive towards others.

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