9-yr-old felt uneasy in a chat with an adult—mom’s clever tip gave her the perfect way out
A person might have to navigate uncomfortable situations quite a few times in their life. So it is essential to know how to deal with them the right way. A mom decided to teach her nine-year-old daughter how to get out of difficult situations with one simple sentence. The woman also gave the girl some tips and reasons on why it was important to use that sentence, per a video shared by the mom, Charisse A Sims, who goes by @charissesims on the platform.
Charisse had noticed that her nine-year-old was uncomfortable during a conversation with an adult and decided to talk to her afterwards. She pointed out that he didn't think what the person said was appropriate and that she could immediately see that the girl was "uncomfortable." The mom told her to use one sentence if she found herself in such a situation the next time. "I feel uncomfortable in this conversation. Let's talk about something else." The mom made her daughter practice the line a couple of times. "Do you think you'd feel uncomfortable saying that to her?" the woman asked and the girl agreed to that. "Which one is a longer discomfort? Taking 10 seconds to say [the sentence] or sitting 20-30 minutes in a conversation you feel uncomfortable in?" she followed up.
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Charisse acknowledged that both options can be uncomfortable, but it would be better to choose the first one and get it over with sooner. "When things are uncomfortable, they are uncomfortable. You just have to pick which discomfort you would rather choose." She added, "It is uncomfortable telling people no, it is uncomfortable telling people stop, it is uncomfortable telling people I don't know what you are doing because you are going to hurt their feelings and you want them to like you. Choose your discomfort and choose the one that is going to help you, not hurt you."
The caption read, "Teaching my nine-year-old daughter to navigate uncomfortable situations…this conversation started with me asking her if she knew what 'intuition' meant? She said, 'Like paying for college?' I said, 'Close, but PAYING attention to your feelings and thoughts!'" The mom continued, "I wish when I was growing up, I was taught more about how to actually navigate tricky situations rather than just being told to stay out of them." The woman agreed that it was simple, but not always an easy thing to do. "Our children need more support and actual practice navigating these awkward situations. They also need validation in their ability to hear from themselves and know what is best for them!" People appreciated the mom's advice in the comments section of the video.
@chrysti_ane commented, "So good! Teaching that there are 2 types of discomfort in this situation: the discomfort of not being true to yourself to please others, or the discomfort of standing up for yourself and your needs. Love it!" @lovemyisha wrote, "A lot of adults still need this conversation, go ahead, mom, great lesson." @felicialatour remarked, "Yes, ma'am. I teach my kids the same. We role-play at least once a week about how to navigate if something comes up. They are tired of me now, but they are prepared!" The mom often shares how she teaches kids and teens to navigate different situations. In one video, she taught a group of teens how to get through a conflict the right way.
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You can follow Charisse A Sims (@charissesims) on Instagram for more parenting content.
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