Reader Question
Toddler emotions / tantrums - I'm not sure if Lexi is in this stage yet, as she seems happy and engaged in almost all of your posts but my son moved into the high emotions / tantrum phase quickly after his second birthday. Hearing your thoughts on helping toddlers with big emotions and how to handle tantrums would be great. I've ordered some books on the topic but I would be really interested in hearing about a real mom's experience. From what I read on your blog it seems as though you are very respectful of Lexi's feelings - I wondered if you could give some tips on how stay calm and collected when they are having "big feelings" several times throughout the day.
keeping cool
Man, that's the hardest thing ever, of course. I think the key to this is to really KNOW WHY you need to keep your cool. I generally have REALLY good self-control when it comes to emotions but I have to admit, there hasn't been anyone else who has ever gotten me so mad so fast. It's amazing how being out of control with a child who is being unreasonable can get adults really riled up. So while there is no good answer to how to keep calm, because everyone's emotional system is developed differently (and depending on their prenatal environment and upbringing, could be less or more controlled), the biggest thing that helped, as silly as it sounds, is to read as many gentle parenting books to continue reinforcing how important it is to stay calm in these situations and to respond appropriately. To know why you're doing what you doing, rather than rely on intuition alone because intuition is closely correlated with our emotions.I really hope that helps.
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