Emergency situations are almost inevitable. As parents, you fear your child will get stuck in an emergency or unforeseeable situation with little to no knowledge of what to do.
That is why you must teach your child basic survival skills so they can get themselves out of such situations if they ever present themself in the future.
What exactly is an emergency situation?
Emergencies could involve several things, even in the context of a child. It could range from being bullied or beaten by age mates to more life-threatening things like kidnapping, being sexually harassed, being locked in a place with no way out, etc.
Although many of these situations are usually unforeseeable, there’s no harm in teaching your child what to do if they ever find themselves in such a situation.
Here are five things to teach your child to do when faced with an emergency.
1. Teach them to be mindful and very observant of their surroundings
You should first teach your child to be very mindful and observant of their surroundings. They should be quick to notice when something seems unusual.
Teach your child to always trusts their instinct, and once their instinct is telling them that there’s something unusual, they should excuse themselves from such surroundings immediately.
Once your child exits such surroundings, they should call you or reach out to a familiar face for help.
2. Teach your child to reject unwarranted advances
Many children are not taught to say ‘NO’ early enough.
As a parent, ensure to teach your child to say ‘NO’ once they feel cornered into doing something they don’t want to do.
It could be either their friends trying to get them to do something wrong or some adult trying to sexually harass them.
Teach your child to immediately refuse to be a part of an act they are uncomfortable with and to run for help immediately.
3. Teach your child to never trust strangers
This is one rule that even adults keep to. Teach your child to never trust strangers. Tell them to not even speak to strangers or stop if asked to stop by a stranger on the road.
Many kidnapped children are often approached by adults who seem friendly at first to gain the child’s trust.
Make it a habit to constantly warn your child to not engage in conversations with strangers and to run away if a stranger seems adamant about talking with them.
4. Teach your child to shout for help when needed
Tell your child that when they feel they are in a dangerous situation with no way out, it’s okay to scream and shout for help.
Doing so increases their chances of being helped than doing nothing at all.
5. Teach them to use technology for safety, i.e., their phones
One good thing about raising a child today is that there is a lot of technology around to help minimize the risk of being harmed.
You can teach your child to always have their location on their phones whenever they are out. This way, you can effectively keep an eye on them.
They can also immediately reach out to you via calls or text if they sense they are in a dangerous situation. Also, they could reach out to the appropriate authorities if needed.
Emergency situations can occur at any time.
With these 5 tips, we believe your child is more aware of how to deal with emergency situations.
This keeps every parent at ease as you know your child can handle unforeseeable situations if need be.
