Being emotional does not make children weak. It is important however, for the little ones to learn to recognize and understand their emotions. In fact, emotional awareness can help them be mentally strong—even when they feel those emotions deeply.
In spite of achild’s expanding vocabulary and growing independence, they can still feel overwhelmed by strong emotions like sadness, fear, anger, and anxiety. During the early childhood years when children grow, their feelings also grow. Emotions for children can be difficult and it’s really important to deal with them gently. Avoid calling your little one weak or assuming his/her sensitivity has to be fixed. They may have a different temperament and have been born with more emotional sensitivity than you are used to.
Some kids act out because they have a hard time regulating their own emotions, which is a common problem for such small children who have not yet developed the ability to cope with big emotions in a constructive way. They continue to struggle with self-regulation, as they get older. We may also notice that they seem particularly sensitive and have outsized emotional reactions compared to their siblings or peers.
Here’s how to handle your little one’s Strong Emotions:
- Make yourself Calm first
Make sure you use your pause button and drop your agenda (just for now), and take a deep breath before you engage with your child.Remind yourself that your objective is to calm the storm for your child, not escalate it. Never take your child’s emotions personally.
Calm yourself with a mantra: “It’s not an emergency” or “This is an opportunity to be there for my child when he/she’s upset.” You should use this opportunity to build a closer relationship with your little one and teach them helpful lessons about accepting and responding to emotions.
- Help Him/her Label Feelings
It’s important for your little to recognize and understand their feelings. Start by teaching them about their emotions by naming them. For example say, “You look sad right now,” or “I can tell you are angry.” Label your emotions too by saying, “I am sad that we can’t go visit your aunt today,” or “I am angry.” You can also strike up conversations with them about feelings by talking about some characters in books or on TV shows. Every once in a while ask questions such as, “How do you think this character may have felt?” With practice, your child’s ability to label their emotions will improve.
- Affirm the right to talk it out.
Let your kid know that everyone feels some kind of emotions sometimes and that there’s a right and a wrong way to express them. Teach them that they may not be able to help feeling how they do but they can and should manage how they express that feeling. This way your little one would learn to be responsible for his or her words and reactions, regardless of the situation
- Teach specific coping skills.
Teaching your little one how to cope up with their feelings may be helpful to your child to learn to remove themselves from a situation or take some time to think before responding.
- Don’t try to fix everything.
To help your kid learn to work through the problems, don’t just simply remove the problem. Why? Because as they get older, you’ll be less and less able to manipulate their surroundings and protect them from a crisis. Good parenting means training them to handle whatever they encounter with emotional maturity and integrity not just run away from it.
If your little one is dealing with some hard emotions, your child just needs some practice learning how to handle their emotions in a socially acceptable manner. Just because they are overly emotional doesn’t mean they should miss out on life.Enroll them in a good preschool that can help them learn about their emotions. In case you are searching for the right preschool in Gurgaon we have you covered. TSEY is amongst the best preschool in Gurgaon helping children develop emotional understanding through repeated and intentional practice. They help children identify, label and talk about emotions, and support children’s efforts around problem solving.
