Toddler Tantrums, What They Mean and How To Survive Them – Part 2
[Read Toddler Tantrums Part 1]
Your toddler will outgrow tantrums as they gain more control, sense of self, and understanding of how the world works.
You tried to avoid the tantrum but, alas, your child is on the floor screaming…
- Keep your child safe – remove from any unsafe environment
- Consider holding your child tight in a bear hug. If your child responds well with this, continue, if it brings on further frustration let go.
- Don’t argue with your child, or scream back – they are not listening.
- Don’t let the fear of a tantrum change your parenting – filling your child up on candy or preemptively buying a toy you wouldn’t otherwise buy to ‘prevent’ a tantrum will cause your toddler to expect these treats, and tantrum if this doesn’t always occur. Remember – be predictable.
- Keep your calm – your child is learning how to interact with the world through you. If you hit or yell, they learn that is an acceptable way to communicate.
My child is finally calm, now what?
- Consider praising your child for regaining control – now is not the time to chide or punish – they will learn that regaining control was not a valued behaviour.
- Move on – redirect to a new activity or environment and set the stage for a calmer rest of the day.
- Consider a nap or a snack, as this may have been the cause of the tantrum in the first place.
Though it may not provide much solace now, your toddler will outgrow tantrums as they gain more control, sense of self, and understanding of how the world works. This is inevitable, but can be sped up with some consistency, perseverance and predictability.
I hope you found these two articles on Toddler Tantrums, Meaning & How To Survive Them useful, now read a great article on your Toddler and Speech Development.
Read My Full Article in Huffington Post – Avoiding Toddler Tantrums, and Disciplining Like a Pro
