I’m struggling with my 3-year-old’s tantrums when things don’t go her way. It feels like every time there’s the smallest issue—a snack they don’t like, a toy not working right, or even if we have to leave the park—boom, full-blown meltdown. It’s exhausting. I’ve tried staying calm, giving them space, explaining things, but nothing seems to work. I know it’s normal for kids to get upset, but this feels like over the top. Anyone else dealing with this? How do you help your kids learn to deal with frustration?
I’m dealing with a lot of the same frustrations, you are not alone! I’ve got a 2 and 4 year old, and my 3yo niece living with us as well, so it can be very overwhelming.
A few small things that sometimesss help are completely redirecting their attention (if they aren’t upset cause they’re in trouble) by making things silly. Like I will offer to draw an animal of their choice on their back and let them pick the animal and the color. I’ll ask them if they want to blow out candles and pretend my fingers are candles and put them down when they take deep breaths and blow. Putting an ice pack on their neck when they’re overwhelmed sometimes helps calm their nervous system, and is also great when I’m very stressed to use on me. Letting them know to tell me if they just ‘need a minute alone’ when they’re overstimulated gives them an out to relax alone.
Good luck though, I’m right there with you!
I totally get where you’re coming from. My 5-year-old used to lose it over the smallest things, and it would drive me up the wall. What helped a bit was giving them more choices—like picking between two snacks or two activities. I also started talking about emotions more, like pointing out when they were frustrated and why it’s okay to feel that way. Over time, they started to understand their feelings better and the tantrums slowly eased up. The app has a few tools for this, I’ve really liked Miror my calm and story refleciton time.