Oh, the dreaded terrible two’s. As much as I’d like to stay positive and call it the terrific two instead, I can’t deny the days when my kids are driving me nuts with their snappy moods and temper tantrums.
The question on every parents of toddlers is how do we deal with tantrums? The easiest way is to give in to whatever your child wants but we could end up spoiling them. Yes, spoiling a child is possible according to Julia Gabriel, founder director of Julia Gabriel Centre and an educator for more than 31 years.
I attended her talk on Positive Discipline and learnt a way to deal with toddler tantrums. It is surprisingly simple and it works – kind of made me go, “Why didn’t I think of that?”
Anyway, the next time you see your child is about to have a meltdown, follow these steps to stop it in its track.
1. Stay calm and pick the child up.
2. Walk away from the scene (go into another room) and continue with whatever you were doing before the tantrum starts.
3. Once the child calms down, talk about why he/she was upset, labeling the correct emotion, and discuss how the child can react if faced with similar situation in the future.
What not to do during a tantrum in 2-3 years old
• Walk away or abandon the child. They may throw themselves on to the floor and get hurt
• Try to reason during the tantrum. Wait until the child calms down.
• Never give in to a tantrum and delay the consequences. This may confuse the child.
• Shame the child to stop. Teach a child to accept that emotions like anger does happen, and how he/she can express it positively.
• Spank the child. They are too young to understand and may exacerbate the crying to the point where the child is unable to stop. You are also teaching them that hitting is ok.
Try it the next time you are faced with your toddler temper tantrum. Let me know if it works for you and if you have other tips, do share!
This article first appeared on The Chill Mom Blog. Head on over for more parenting and motherhood tips.
Michelle Hon is the founder and chief baby planner at The Chill Mom Maternity Concierge. She provides stress-free pregnancy to busy mums-to-be. Her work can be seen on TV documentary, Man Birth which will start showing on Channel 5 in July 2016. A mother of two, this former fashion model turned entrepreneur often shares beauty, home management, motherhood and entrepreneurial tips on her blog, The Chill Mom. She believes motherhood is a joy; we should listen to our own mother instinct and not a give a sh*t about what people think (also known as “believing in yourself”).
