Helping Children When They Are Angry: A Parent’s Guide

As a parent, you may feel helpless or frustrated when your child gets angry. Tantrums, screaming, and fighting can affect your mental health and daily routine. But it’s important to remember that anger is a natural emotion, and understanding how to manage it is vital for children to learn. In this blog post, we’ll provide you with practical tips on how to help children control their anger so that you can minimize stress and promote positive behavior within your family.

Acknowledge and Validate Their Emotions

The first step in helping your child manage their anger is to validate their feelings. This means acknowledging that their emotions are real and understandable. A simple phrase such as “I can see that you’re feeling upset right now” can make a big difference. It shows your child that you’re on their side and they’re not alone in their frustration. By doing so, they will feel more understood and may start to calm down a bit.

‘’One day, a mother had to cancel her child's plans to attend a friend's birthday party due to unforeseen circumstances. Her child became frustrated and angry and threw a tantrum, refusing to accept her explanation.

The mother understood her child's disappointment but also knew that it was necessary to teach her child how to handle frustration and disappointment in a healthy way. She sat down with her child and spoke openly about how it's normal to feel disappointed, but it's also essential to learn to cope with and manage these feelings.

Together, they came up with a plan to do something fun at home instead, such as baking a cake or having a movie night. The mother also reassured her child that they could still celebrate with their friend at another time.

As they spent time together and did activities, the child's frustration slowly dissipated, and they were able to enjoy the day in a positive way. The mother felt proud of her child for learning to manage their emotions and for being able to find joy in a different way.’’

Teach Them Calming Techniques

When a child is angry, they may feel like they’re losing control. Teaching them deep breathing, visualization, or physical exercises can help them regain control. Encourage your child to take deep breaths, count to ten, or squeeze a stress ball. You can also use visualizations as a calming mechanism, such as imagining your angry emotions as a balloon filling up and then slowly deflating.

Practice Active Listening

Another useful tool in helping children manage their anger is practicing active listening. This means genuinely hearing what your child is trying to tell you without interruption. This helps them feel heard and understood. Many times, all a child wants is a listening ear, and by practicing active listening, it alleviates the frustration of feeling unheard.

Create a Safe Space for Communication

Children need to feel secure in their communication, especially when discussing matters that may be uncomfortable. One of the best ways to do this is to create a safe space for communication within your home. You can designate a room or corner where your child can blow off the steam, journal, draw, or talk about their feelings. Encourage your child to use this space when angry or upset. Providing them with a safe space will encourage the healthy expression of their anger and emotions.

Be Consistent with Boundaries

Finally, it’s essential to be consistent with the boundaries and consequences you set in place with your child. They will quickly begin to see that their behavior has effects and behaving negatively to get what they want will not prove fruitful in the long run. Remain firm on what behaviors are acceptable and unacceptable and call attention to instances when your child’s behavior- even when angry- was one that was praised.

Managing your child’s anger requires consistent, patient practice --it is never a single event. Using these five techniques, you can help your child develop healthy coping mechanisms and learn how to regulate emotions. It’s important to remember to implement these techniques consistently and always to seek professional help if needed. As with most things in life, coaching and guiding children through more difficult times can be trying, but it can be done with calm and considerate techniques. Don't forget to check out the content of @healthiest_baby and @dr.siggie for more tips and guides on how to handle your child's emotions. They provide valuable insights and practical advice.