• Skip to content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • Shop ModernMom
  • Become An Insider

ModernMom

The premiere destination for moms

  • Parenting
    • Pregnancy
    • Baby
    • Kids
    • Tweens and Teens
    • ModernMom Monday Videos
  • Cooking
  • Living Healthy
    • Breast Cancer
    • Health & Fitness
    • Body after Baby
    • Beauty
    • Relationships
    • Love
  • Lifestyle
    • Crafts
    • At Home
    • Education
    • Travel
    • Pets
    • Decorate
    • Money
    • Brooke Burke
  • Celebrate
    • Holidays
      • Easter
      • Valentine’s Day
      • New Year’s
      • Christmas
      • Hanukah
      • Halloween
      • Thanksgiving
    • Birthdays
    • Parties
  • Must Have
  • Contests
  • Entertainment

How to Raise a Compassionate Kid

April 30, 2010 by Dr. Margulies Leave a Comment

I am of the belief that the concept of compassion, empathy and altruism begins at an early age and often in the home. Young children internalize the values of their adult relationships; whether it be their birth parents, grandparents, foster parents or whatever home environment they experience. Young people are like sieves, they are extensions of their role models and therefore, mirror the ways in which those role models behave toward others. If a child feels safe and secure at an early age, they are more likely to venture out into the world armed with those skills. Unfortunately, my experience has shown me that it is when they have been emotionally neglected and or devalued that they become conditioned to focusing on themselves, and their needs.

Respect

I’m not sure we can raise our children to have true altruism as adults without some kind of foundation of caring and respect. Teenagers are often inspired to care for other in much the way they have been cared for themselves and are able to find value in other’s when they have been valued themselves.

Service to Others

There are many ways to offer service to others and it is something I advocate in my therapeutic work with families. Although not everyone can volunteer a great deal of their spare time, or make financial donations, there are other ways to be selfless and in so doing, create a kind and compassionate nature. Whether it’s helping a neighbor, working at a food bank for the homeless, donating items from your home you no longer need, such as, clothing to appropriate organizations or churches, or quite simply by standing up for someone at school if they are being bullied, there is no doubt we control the ability to effect change. Finding the time to be selfless empowers one’s nature and both teens and even young children can benefit by doing so.

Moral Willpower

So whether we are parents or simply in a position to impact a young person, the way we teach and model our own behavior is critical towards helping to make better citizens of our young people. Whether it’s the simple nature of human decency or the larger sociological issues like guns and drugs; our willingness to reach out to others in need can have a powerful effect. When we exercise our moral willpower for the greater good and in so doing make the world a safer place for our young people, we have empowered them to take up the same arms for their generation and future generations.

About the Author

Dr. Ivy Margulies is a licensed Clinical Psychologist (PSY20821) with a private practice in Los Angeles, California. Her primary focus is working with parents on their parenting skills, knowledge, capacity to understand their child’s point of view and improving the parent-child attachment relationship. Her expertise includes child development, infant mental health, pregnancy related issues, post partum, infertility, pregnancy loss, grief, young widowhood, depression, and anxiety.

Comments

comments

Filed Under: Parenting

About Dr. Margulies

Dr. Ivy Margulies is a clinical psychologist who specializes in perinatal issues, infertility, postpartum diagnoses, parenting, trauma, pregnancy/newborn loss, young widows and grief. She is the co-founder of Ivy & Osborn, an infertility, pregnancy and postpartum mental health center in Santa Monica, California. (www.ivyandosborn.com) She has worked with families and children for more than 20+ years. Her professional associations have included the UCLA Child Study Center, St. Johns Hospital Child Study Center, Childrens Hospital Los Angeles, The Pump Station in Santa Monica and the Akasha Center for Integrative Medicine. A member of the Los Angeles Perinatal Mental Health Task Force, Dr. Margulies is a contributing expert on ModernMom.com and the mother of four children, including twins. Dr. Ivy Margulies is the co-founder of Ivy & Osborn, a fertility, pregnancy and postpartum Mental Health Center in Santa Monica, California. www.ivyandosborn.com

Reader Interactions

Primary Sidebar

Tell a friend

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Search

ModernMom Boutique

ModernMom TV

Featured

Brooke Burke: My Slim Down Secrets

Everywhere I look, I hear about a new fitness fad, a quick … [Read More...] about Brooke Burke: My Slim Down Secrets

Must Have

winter

Pre-Holiday Must-Haves

"It's beginning to look  a lot like Christmas..." The … [Read More...] about Pre-Holiday Must-Haves

Did you know?

Married Man Hides His Feelings For You

How To Know If A Married Man Hides His Feelings For You

Cures & Remedies for Head Lice

Cures & Remedies for Head Lice

Cover a Pork Roast

Should You Cover a Pork Roast & Add Liquid When Baking?

Remove the Lens From Plastic Frames

How to Remove the Lens From Plastic Frames

Substitutes for Butter When Baking Cookies

Symptoms of Pregnancy If HCG Injection Is Taken

How to Bake Thin Sliced Turkey Cutlets

Footer

  • About Us
  • Contact ModernMom
  • Advertise With Us
  • Press
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Contributors

Copyright © 2021 Modern Mom. All Rights Reserved.

Reproduction of any portion of this website only at the express permission of Mom, Inc.

The information provided on ModernMom is for educational use only. It should not be used as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.