How Should Parents Behave Towards a Child?
Some children experience school phobia because they will be separated from their parents. This fear and reluctance, usually seen during the period when schools start and school supplies are bought, can last for months. As the child's fear and anxiety increase as the time to go to school approaches, symptoms such as headache, stomach ache, nausea, and irritability can be observed. Overly protective behavior from parents causes the child to lose self-confidence. They experience the fear of separation from their family because they don't know how to behave when left alone. When the teacher's attitude and their friends' mockery are added to this situation, it can become insurmountable. This situation is more commonly seen in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, learning disabilities, intellectual disabilities, behavioral disorders, depression, and social phobia.
Parents should not resort to behaviors such as threats, violence, judgment, and intimidation towards children with school phobia. Empathy should be established by trying to understand the child's fear. The factor causing the child's fear of school should be identified and resolved. If deemed necessary, help should be sought from a psychiatrist, and the child's regular attendance at school should be made a habit.
