Parents and sympathy

4:17:43

2023-08-02

502

You may be surprised to learn that the first lessons young boys learn about empathy are when they play with their parents. Experts believe that stimulation in this way allows the child to realize his father's emotional state (Is he just playing? Is he angry?) and his own (are you tired of playing? Is it fun?). Babies can learn to send signals such as crying or turning away when they don't need that much excitement. A father can be one of the best teachers for his son in the art of empathy and emotional bonding.

If you are a father every moment of your life with your son is a lesson, whether you know it or not. You teach him what to do or not to do whenever you have a conversation, discipline him or spend time playing with him. The interesting thing is that boys fully understand the concept of masculinity as they grow up, even if their fathers do not have an active role in their lives. Missing Him is the kind of care and love a father can give... when he chooses to.

A study on mothers' attitudes and behavior conducted by the University of Texas in 2009 showed that most mothers believe they can do a better job in finding a balance between work and family if the father provides more help. Mothers also said that "work responsibilities" are the biggest obstacle to a father's success in his role as a father.

Our civilization's model of the strong, silent man can have a devastating effect on a man's ability to offer empathy, warmth, and tenderness. However, this is what the child often needs from his father. Boys who score best in studies of psychological adjustment are those with loving, affectionate fathers, fathers with traits often thought of as feminine. As for the boys who score the worst results in psychological adjustment, they are the ones who have parents who exploit them, treat them with excessive cruelty, or neglect them.

Know who your son is

When you're a parent, it's tempting to focus on behavior, on lessons, on encouraging your child to succeed (or at least stay out of trouble). Undoubtedly, teaching etiquette, setting acceptable boundaries, and following up on a child is an important part of parenting. However, no one is able to strengthen the empathy and emotional culture in your child as you are.

• Necessary information

True empathy is understanding the other person's feelings and inner experience, which is also realizing not only what the person is doing or feeling, but who that person really is.

A father can give his son the valuable gift of acceptance and understanding (and this is not always easy, especially when it turns out that your son's dreams are completely different from yours). The second gift is the truth about his own feelings and experiences. Remember that you and your son (and all humans) have reflective neurons that enable you to read each other's physical movements, feelings, and non-verbal messages. When you express your feelings clearly, simply, and in nonthreatening ways, your son has the opportunity to learn from your feelings and his own.

Simply put, your child needs calm, clear information about what you're thinking and feeling. You could say, "I am so mad at you right now," instead of yelling at him. You could say, "I'm disappointed I didn't get the promotion I wanted," instead of heading to the garage alone. When you show emotional honesty and empathy, you give your son the ability to nurture these qualities in him and to become a stronger, happier man.