Moving can be a stressful, difficult, but exciting time for all of the parties involved. However, children might take a move differently, as they will have to leave behind all of their friends and pretty much anything they’ve ever known. There are a number of things that parents can do to better prepare their children for an upcoming move.
Validate Their Feelings
Moving can cause some big feelings of loss and grief in children. They might not like the idea of leaving their friends, and they might also be worried that they will be unable to make more. The idea of leaving the one home they’ve ever known might be extremely daunting. Throughout all of this, make sure you are there to support your children. Let them know that you sympathize with their emotions, and offer them healthy outlets to express any other emotions that they might be feeling.
Inform Them About the Move as Early as Possible
At first, you might think to wait until the last possible moment in order to tell your child about your upcoming move. However, this might not be the best idea, as sudden changes for children can be extremely difficult for them to deal with. Letting them know about a move as early as possible can minimize the stress that they feel in the long run. Additionally, doing this will allow them sufficient time to process all of their emotions.
Decision-Making
Throughout the moving process, children might become frustrated easily, as they might feel as though they have no say or control over any of the decisions that they are being made. In order to combat this issue, be sure to involve your children in the move. Ask them for their opinion about certain things, such as what they would want in their new room. Allow them to decide what items they want to keep or donate before moving to the new location.
Staying in Touch
Something that might be reassuring to your child would be to know that there are still other ways to maintain contact with their old friends. As a parent, you should make sure to reassure your child of this. Additionally, you should work to make maintaining contact easy for your child. This can be in the form of weekly phone calls, emails or even letters.
Spending As Much Time with Friends as Possible
Before moving, allow your child to spend as much time as they would like with their friends. Allow them to cherish these moments, as it might be a long time before the child is able to physically reconnect with any of their friends. You might even want to plan a party for the family in order to have an opportunity to connect with everyone one last time before moving.
Be Transparent
Moving might present a lot of unknowns for children, leading them to feel rather lost or otherwise confused. They might have several questions about the moving process. Be sure to answer these questions to the best of your knowledge.
Moving can oftentimes become a stressful experience. Allow our team of professional movers at Arthur Perez Movers to handle your move with care and ease, while you worry about what’s important. Contact us today at (504) 241-5535.
