Do you feel children should be sheltered from unhappiness?

Question

I personally think in some cases you definitely should shelter your kid from unhappiness, especially if it’s something that can hurt them badly! Like a parent who’s in and out of their lives constantly. Or in terms of if someone says they’re going to pick your child up and take them somewhere and they have a habit of not showing. And in some cases when there is deaths in the family, when they’re too young to understand those kinds of things. 
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Answer

There’s always an age appropriate way to explain things to children. Lying to them will always backfire. Being honest with them in an age appropriate way helps them to build security and be less anxious. Teaching children to navigate ALL feelings helps them to be well rounded functioning members of society. Sheltering them from ‘sadness’ doesn’t help them in the long run.

Answer

There are something’s that your children should be sheltered from. Don’t lie to them, but don’t put it on them, where they’re taking on your stress.

Answer

My parents exposed us to all kinds of situations. We attended funerals as children and were taught about heaven. I didn't have a connection with the person who passed until I was around 10 though. Mainly when we were younger it was learning to be respectful to others who were grieving. My parents would argue around us but also make up or apologize. They are openly affectionate and flirt around us too so we saw both sides of a relationship. When our dog was put down my parents explained again about heaven and the rainbow bridge.
I'll use another example. I was 10 on 9/11. We were told what was happening and even watched the news on mute while working on an assignment. We may not have known about terrorism at the time but I think it helped us grasp the magnitude of what was happening.
 You have to prep and mold future adults. You can't shelter them forever. Now I'm not saying throw them into the hungry games and prep them for when you're going to die but honesty and real world coping skills are a must. 
This topic also makes me think about the friends episode where Phoebe hadn't seen the ending to old yellower or the beginning of Bambi because her mother sheltered her from painful movies.

Answer

I think the answer to this question has to be based on specific scenarios. Also I think how much detail you expose your child to during unhappy times has to be considered (example someone commits suicide, you can say this person passed away but I personally wouldn’t tell my children what happened unless they were a certain age). IMO sheltering children from everything really hinders them in learning appropriate coping and behavior skills. Definitely let kids be kids but every once in awhile exposure to more than just rainbows and butterflies will help prepare them for their future as young adults.

Answer

we do not argue in front of our children as it's not their business and I hated when my parents fought in front of me and so did my husband.. it felt like we were always in the middle having to choose sides and I don't want our kids to feel that way. although they can tell we are angry with eachother but we dont speak ill of eachother. when it comes to death I always say they got sick and died. we are a farming family so life happens before our kids eyes sometimes without a filter. If I know someone isn't going to be there for them I don't even tell them they're coming. I used to get so upset when people were no shows in my life. life's tough and I don't want to have them go through all of life's obsticals at a young age.

Answer

Case by case basis and age appropriately

Do you feel children should be sheltered from unhappiness?

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