Viral '5- Second' Parenting Insight Can Create Major Changes in Families

Parents have discovered a new parenting tip and they are calling it a family game-changer.

Dr. Becky Kennedy strikes again as she shares a new 'five-second' parenting tip that has gone viral since.

The Manhattan-based clinical psychologist, mother of three and the founder of Good Inside, a parenting website, shared a video recently in her Instagram account, which already has 1.7 million followers, that teaches parents how to better connect with their children.

Her newest parenting tip, she says, just takes five seconds of a parents' time yet offers a lifetime of reward. Parents just need to look their children in the face and tell them ten words - "It can be really hard to be a kid, right?"

Importance of connection

The doctor emphasized on the video, which currently has almost 50,000 likes, that these 10 words will tell the kids how their parents understand and sympathize with them, and these are big deals in the eyes of children. They will realize that their mom or dad is actually able to see the world in their own perspective, which opens a wider door for connection.

"Connecting to our kids helps generate good behavior in the short term, as kids who feel connected to their parents are more likely to listen, use their manners, and cooperate in challenging situations. And connection is everything when it comes to parenting for the long haul," Kennedy wrote on the caption of her video.

She further stated in the video that being able to see the world from the eyes of the kids is being able to connect to "a reality that very few adults actively name for them." When parents connect with their kids and validate their feelings, they are helping the kids to "feel seen," Motherly reported.

When children feel seen, an encompassing behavioral improvement happens. They become the individuals we pray for them to be when they get older . They have secure attachments, and are resilient and self-confident. Indeed, a game-changer.

Read More: Latest Parenting Books Help Parents Understand Kids Better in Social Media, Post-pandemic Realities

Expert warns that the strategy does not work for all types of kids

Stef Tousignant, a parenting expert from the San Francisco Bay Area, could not agree more with Dr. Kennedy, emphasizing that connection and empathy are valuable in parenting young children.

"Really seeing our children for exactly who they are is where we should direct our energy - and [getting] to know ourselves as parents, too," she shared with Fox News Digital.

However, she warns parents that this 'five-second' parenting strategy does not work for all kids. Parents should know by now that there is no such thing as one-size-fits-all when it comes to the young ones, whose temperaments and moods vary. Thus, they respond in different ways when it comes to parenting tips and tricks.

Yet, she ended up still encouraging parents to try the new tip as parents have the opportunity to get to know their kids better by just checking if the rule works on them.

Most of the parents who watched Kennedy's video expressed their gratitude for providing them the "simple reminder." However, there were also a few who started questioning her idea.

One parent was particularly worried that if they follow her insight, their child might start focusing on the word "hard," and will ultimately feel that being himself or herself is truly hard.

"I do love this, yet, at the same time, people tend to act the way they are described/life is described. If I say it's hard being a kid, I imagine he'll start focusing on all the ways it's hard. Yes, I will identify and connect, but I believe it will create a new problem," the commenter wrote.

Related article: Setting Playdate Boundaries: Keeping the Child Safe at All Times