A Guide To Moving House With Kids

Moving is in itself a stressful process. It may be hard for adults but it is worst for children. They have to change schools, lose friendships, and settle into a new environment. As normal as it may sound to adults, the reality is different for most young kids.

Although all stress cannot be taken out, the process can relatively be made easier for everyone involved. Whether you’re moving out of the city or across the city, the move will be difficult for the whole family. But, if you can keep things upbeat and try to show them that you’re in control of everything – it doesn’t matter if things take a little longer, or if you need a little help here and there – they’ll be more confident in the move and you’ll all adjust better to the new home, town and school.

To make things smoother here are our top tips to make moving with kids easier.

LOOK CONFIDENT
You can take time out to have a little cry alone, and then try to show them that everything will be fine. This way they can feel more secure in the knowledge that they have a parent that takes care of everything. They’re probably going to be more stressed than you are if they see you in pain! Keep it private, or at least only to the adults.

CONVINCE THEM ABOUT THE NEW SPACE’S POSITIVE ASPECTS!
Sending your kids to a new school is a big thing for both you and your child. Moving is all about change, which is normally scary for children. But, when you consider the positives of the move (better school, new friends etc.), it should help to ease the fear that they may experience when they arrive at the new house. Tell them about all the great things they can expect from this new place. A better school, better neighbourhood and positive environment can ease their stress.

IDENTIFY A MOVING DATE THAT WORKS FOR EVERYONE
If you have school-age children, you will want to factor in when they’ll be going back to school and when they are on holiday. If you have an infant you’ll also want to factor in daycare arrangements and nursery pick-ups/drop-offs. You might want to consider hiring a professional mover to help you on moving day itself.

GET THEM INVOLVED FROM THE BEGINNING
Kids get all freaked out when they know that the home is moving. A lot of questions can be expected from them. This is how curiosity and fear mechanisms in children work. When the family hasn’t moved before or doesn’t move frequently, then things can be more complicated and stressful. This is why it is necessary to talk to your children about the process. Involve them from the beginning. Pitch the idea of moving to a better place. Tell them about all possibilities of betterment they can look forward to. Most importantly, keep them involved and busy!

TALK TO A PROFESSIONAL
The thoughts of moving can be pretty scary, but once you’ve made the decision to move and you have chosen date then you have to deal with it. In most cases, there are only a few months before the move date and parents want to be prepared. So we opted for a family therapist. A family therapist can be a good person to let your children talk to during these times. He can convince them in a friend about how change is part of life. Things might get better and more positive after this.