Ask a ten-year-old what you should do when you catch a virus, and the child would quickly suggest getting into bed and drinking some hot chicken soup. Ask what you should do if you get a cut on your knee, and the child would promote cleaning it (or utilizing antibacterial ointment) and protecting it. Children realize that if you break a bone in your leg, you need to get a cast on it so it heals properly. .
If you asked this same child why these methods were necessary, they would say that treating such wounds encourages them to heal and keeps them from getting worse. Colds can transform into pneumonia, cuts can get infected, and that whenever broken bones mend inadequately, you'll experience difficulty walking once the cast comes off. We show our children how to deal with their bodies from a young age, and they, as a rule, learn such lessons well.
Yet, ask an adult how you should deal with the sharp pain of rejection, the staggering hurt of loneliness, or the harsh disillusionment of failure. The person would struggle to think about how to treat these mental wounds. Ask how you should deal with recovering from low confidence or loss and trauma, and adults would continue to struggle. Ask how you may manage intrusive thoughts or guilt, and you are probably going to be met with timid looks, feet shuffling, and an intense effort to change the subject.
