Raising Kids With Spirituality May Protect Their Mental Health

A new study from Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health finds that kids and teens who are brought up with spiritual practices tend to have better  mental health as they grow. Spirituality plays an crucial role in self-understanding and learning in early childhood development. “Young kids have an incredible sense of wonder – they’re innate spiritual beings,” says Marianne Neifert, pediatrician, author, and mother of five.

Encouraging spiritual development during early childhood leads to the overall success of kids in many ways as they age. Spiritual development promotes positive coping skills and ways of handling negative incidents we face in day to day life. These children shows a greater sense of strength as well as a more optimistic outlook towards their future. They see their own tussle as chance for growth and self-enhancement.

Spiritual development, especially in early childhood, often develops an environment of morality that encourages healthy views of ethics that encourages them towards acts of kindness, compassion, and charity. Healthy spiritual development in young children develops respectful interactions among those with different religious views.

Researches shows:

• Spirituality plays a very important role in kids social, emotional and cognitive growth. Kids with a strong spirituality overall have good grades, more optimism and determination.
• Spirituality that have a direct personal relationship with nature, and a universal presence of higher power (by any name) has a clear effect on physical well-being, healing from depression and disease. In fact a spiritual awareness generates the similar readings in brain scans as recovery because of a medication.

The natural spirituality in children and young people can be developed and promoted by such steps as meditation, prayer, or long walks in natural surroundings where a sense of transcendence can be felt. Parents can always promote things like caring for others, love, empathy or positive approach towards life.

Parents who forcefully push their kids to get “success” in finding the “right” school and getting the “right kind of job” should understand the impact of the situation. Spirituality is very important for kids motivation and success. Spiritual kids have a sense of inner strength, a sense of long term approach, higher sacred self, and most importantly to stay happy whatever comes in their life rather than the day’s win or defeat. And when they achieve their targets the spiritually engaged kids can actually feel fulfilled and contended by their life choices.