Raising resilient children means preparing them to handle life’s inevitable challenges with confidence and adaptability. Discover practical ways to nurture emotional and physical resilience, from nature play to risk-taking and holistic wellness.
Life is full of challenges, and as much as we would like to shield our children from them all, we simply can’t. They will grow up and have to navigate the demanding world we live in today, just like us. What we can do is invest from a young age in raising children that will be able to bounce back from challenges quickly, recover from stress and disappointments easily, and adapt to change as if it’s second nature.
But what exactly is resilience and why is it important?
Resilience is the capacity to handle stress and recover quickly from setbacks while maintaining psychological well-being. These stressors and setbacks can be social, emotional, and physical. Resilience in children can manifest as the ability to regulate their own emotions, stay healthy even when viruses are circulating, and adapt to new environments and people with ease.
Resilience in children and adults alike is at an all-time low
As a society, we have become very dependent on convenience, leading to low resilience.
Several factors contribute to this, including:
- Jam-packed schedules and lack of free time/play – This dramatically decreases the chances of challenges presenting themselves, let alone working to overcome them. It does not leave room for flexibility.
- Increased screen time and decreased time in nature – Cognitive, emotional, and immune health all suffer from less time outdoors.
- Frequent use of medications – A healthy gut microbiome is essential not only for a robust immune system but also affects cognitive and emotional health. Frequent use of antibiotics and other medications harms good gut bacteria, in return decreasing overall resilience.
What does lack of resilience look like?
Here are some things that can help you identify low resilience in your children:
- Frequent tantrums and meltdowns – Everyone can have a bad day, but frequent tantrums and meltdowns from minor setbacks point to low emotional resilience.
- Frequent illness – Getting sick easily and often indicates that the immune system can’t keep up, showing a lack of physical resilience.
- Food aversions – Picky eating and food sensitivities are another thing that points to a lack of physical resilience, specifically in the gut.
- Overreaction to minor stressors – Have you ever wondered why something as small as turning off the TV completely set off your child? Lack of emotional resilience.
These are things that can absolutely improve when the right kind of support is present.
Ways to build resilience in children
We talked about what resilience is, why it is important, and what the lack of it looks like. Now let’s talk about some ways to build long-lasting resilience that will not only help you and your children now but will also help them become adaptable and emotionally stable adults even in the face of adversities.
- Getting out in nature as much as possible – Simply being in the sun with bare feet helps the gut microbiome, healthy hormone production, mood, focus, and energy, which helps build physical, emotional, and mental resilience. Being outdoors also presents challenges, like hot or cold weather, getting wet, getting dirty, getting bit by bugs, and being exposed to these “undesirable conditions” from a young age creates resilient children that aren’t scared of change and aren’t stressed out by minor challenges.
- Free play and risky play – Lack of structure creates room for children to push their own boundaries, to fail and recover. It creates room for trying new things. It presents the ability to challenge their own bodies with things like manual labor (e.g., carrying heavy things). And all of these increase emotional, mental, and physical resilience.
- Herbs, especially adaptogens – Certain plants and mushrooms, known as adaptogens, increase the body’s ability to handle stress, promote adaptability, as well as immune health. Herbs can also help strengthen the gut microbiome, support the nervous system, and so much more.
Building resilience in children is all about giving them the right tools and watching them thrive. Physically and emotionally resilient children aren’t easily overwhelmed when stressors and setbacks arise. They are able to adapt, self-regulate, and bounce back quickly. These skills lay a strong foundation for them to grow into unwavering adults who persevere through life’s challenges.
At The Wild School, we help build emotional and physical resilience in children through lots of free play, risky play, and time to explore in nature, rain or shine.
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by Viktorya Avetisyan