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New research published in the Journal of Child Development shows that the degree to which parents respond to their infants’ and toddlers’ needs promptly, generously, and consistently (the keys to healthy attachment) predicts how anxious their children will be in young adulthood, especially among boys and children who tend to have shy temperaments to begin with. (Read more details here).
This is just the latest in a series of studies that show how responding promptly, generously, and consistently to children’s needs (as opposed, for instance, to letting kids cry it out) decreases their likelihood of experiencing anxiety and depressive disorders in young adulthood. Parents, you CAN give your kids the edge they need to be healthy, strong, confident, resilient adults. As I describe in both Parenting with Grace and Then Comes Baby, all you have to do is respond to your children. Don’t make them work for your attention. Trust the feeding and sleeping schedule God built into your baby instead of imposing arbitrary schedules on your children. You are your child’s best hope for a healthy happy life!