Actor Kajol not too long ago opened up about her expertise with motherhood and the way her kids have taught her stunning life classes in surprising moments. Talking to Bollywood Bubble, she shared how arguments together with her children, particularly round meals, become moments of private progress and introspection.
“Let me inform you, a lot of the fights between me and my children have occurred on the eating desk,” she mentioned. Reflecting on one such disagreement together with her daughter Nysa, Kajol shared, “So many instances there have been situations the place, you realize, typically I look again and particularly in the case of meals… At one level, I realised, Nysa checked out me and mentioned, ‘Mother, simply calm down. I do know what I’m doing, and I’ll eat once I’m hungry.’ And I checked out her and thought, sure, she’s going to eat when she’s hungry. She’s lived in a boarding college, gone to London. And she or he’s nonetheless alive and doing high quality. She’s joyful, she’s thriving, so clearly, she’s carried out one thing proper.”
Kajol additionally admitted how her kids challenged her views and altered her in methods she hadn’t anticipated. “I’m a really opinionated particular person… and to vary my opinion, you would want to debate with me and persuade me that what you’re saying and pondering is true. I believe the true shock got here when my kids may do this to me with out saying an excessive amount of… only one line or one look. I don’t consider I’m being conceited once I say I’m a very good mom. However sure, to be a greater particular person, typically I’ve develop into a greater particular person as a result of my kids have taught me learn how to be higher.”
Why achieve this many parent-child energy struggles occur round meals and mealtime, and the way can mother and father handle these conflicts?
Sonal Khangarot, licensed rehabilitation counsellor and psychotherapist, The Reply Room, says, “Dinner is normally the one time households pause every thing, to come back collectively. That pause makes the desk an area loaded with expectations. For folks, feeding is an act of affection. For kids, it may possibly really feel like stress or management. So when a baby refuses to eat or insists on decisions, it’s not often nearly starvation; it’s about asserting autonomy.”
She continues, “As a therapist, I usually counsel shifting the main focus from ‘how a lot’ or ‘what’ a baby eats to ‘how’ the meal feels. Create rituals round meals, laying the desk collectively, and sharing a excessive and low of the day. Supply decisions throughout the construction. When mealtimes are protected and versatile, the ability wrestle fades, and connection takes centre stage — precisely what we’re all craving.”
What does it take for a guardian to study from their little one genuinely?
For a guardian to genuinely study from their little one, Khangarot notes, it takes humility, curiosity, and a willingness to let go of the concept that age equals authority. As kids develop into younger adults, they start forming identities, opinions, and values of their very own — and this may problem long-held parental beliefs. Nevertheless it’s additionally an invite to develop collectively.
When mother and father practise actual listening, not simply listening to, however receiving and responding with presence, they create area for honesty and connection. “Psychology defines listening as an lively means of absorbing and making that means of what’s being mentioned. Receptive listening, particularly, permits kids to really feel seen quite than corrected. This shift — from parenting as instructing to parenting as relating — helps the connection evolve. It nurtures mutual respect and creates an setting the place each guardian and little one can proceed studying from each other, strengthening their bond by means of the transitions of life,” says the professional.