Child self esteem and courage

Building a child's self esteem by teaching him courage starts early on. For little babies, courage is, and should be, a foreign concept. At this vulnerable stage, they need to be taken care of by their parents in every way.

But do bear in mind that small babies pick up on YOUR feelings. Practice being brave around your baby. When you visit the doctor, for example, and your baby has to be weighed on cold scales, or has to have an uncomfortable injection, react in a calm, reassuring way to any anxiety the baby expresses.

When you baby cries, it can be an instinctive reaction to try to make him stop as quickly as possible. You need to build up a bit of resistance to this. It is OK for your baby to cry - don't overreact or he will pick up on your feelings of anxiety or panic. Instead, just stay calm and reassuring at all times!