A new resource: “Show your parents”
Parental-child communication was one of the main issues that was discussed during the youth suicide prevention grassroots workshops. One of the many examples was the case of an adolescent who had attempted suicide. The case’s parents were both psychiatrists with busy lives and careers . As a result they showed their affection and communicated with their children by providing financial and material gifts. The suicide attempt occurred after the young man had received a sports car for his birthday. Catering for every perceived material “need” is no compensation for real family interaction and communication. The adolescent himself reasoned that he didn’t need a sports car – what he wanted was to be able to talk to his parents. There are many such examples e.g. see making it to adulthood and making it to adulthood (2).
So the issue is how we have lost the ability to have a normal two-way relationship with our children that is instinctively a natural human activity.
Regardless of the answers and explanations to the above question – here is one way of restoring and rebuilding a caring parent-child relationship. Professor Saxby Pridmore and William Pridmore have developed a children’s activity and story book called “Show Your Parents” for children to initiate family interaction – the design of the book is such that it also allows parents to use it to engage with their children.
“Show Your Parents” is designed to encourage kids to engage with their parents and discuss things of interest – download the complete book, or one chapter at a time. There are 38 chapters as follows:-
