Master Your Child’s Behavioral Issues
Behavioral issues in children often leave parents feeling frustrated and exhausted. Hopefully, this quote from Maya Angelou brings you hope when it comes to dealing with behavior problems.
“We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty.”–Maya Angelou
As a parent, you want to reduce the constant battles between you and your children’s emotional tantrums.
You may want to throw in the towel and give in. However, this pattern rarely works.
Think about the butterfly analogy. In parenting, fostering the wonders in your children is helping them cope with life situations.
Create a place to nurture your children’s feelings of security
Why do young children prefer to hang onto a blanket for security? They feel safe and comfortable to talk about their feelings.
Help your children decide on a designated area to sit and chat about problems. In this way, they can help determine their place of nurturing.
For instance, having a place to talk about their feelings would help foster a sense of security. Of course, you want this place to be a secure area, and somewhere you can keep an eye on them.
In this safe area, you can start to develop strategies to support positive behavior growth. Discuss these strategies with your children. A few ideas on how to make the spot a safe and welcoming space can be: including a comfortable seat, background music, or their favorite plush toy.
As different situations of behavioral issues arise, jot these down in a handy journal.
Journaling may begin as a tedious method. However, jotting down strategies that work for your children can quickly become invaluable information. When family members visit, you will possess a technique that will not derail you from what works for your children.
Develop strategies for overcoming your frustration
Oftentimes, you may feel isolated in the battle to help your children deal with their emotions. Some options you might consider for battling that frustration and isolation include:
- Taking care of yourself is an essential part of taking care of others. When you self-care, you feel renewed and refreshed. In turn, you are more apt to take on those frustrations that leave you emotionally empty.
- Communicate with other parental support groups. Getting together with other parents facing similar issues with their children can help you manage your stress too. What are those situations that are troublesome? Ask other parents how they deal with specific behavioral issues. Perhaps, you might learn a new technique you have not thought about it before.
- Enrolling in new courses to learn new skills reduces stress. Friends and families are certainly good choices to go for help. Nevertheless, consider other areas of expertise such as online courses. These classes show you ways to deal with your children’s behavior issues.
- Talk with your doctor about choices in diet, sleep habits, and exercise. For many parents, caffeine is an essential part of a morning routine. Discuss healthier options with your care professional to boost your energy throughout the day. Also, you want to consider exercise options such as walking your dog to feel renovated.
- Use positive techniques of relaxation and breathing to help you focus. Aside from healthy lifestyle options to self-care, you might consider breathing techniques to relax and refresh.
Identify environmental factors affecting behavioral issues
How are external factors affecting your children’s behaviors? Perhaps, a bad grade or bullying entices your children to act in unrecognizable ways at home.
These drastic changes in behavior are potential warnings. Use that designated area mentioned earlier to communicate your concern.
Ask them questions about changes in friendships or classes. You could also keep a communication log of people you talk to in order to find out the possible causes of misbehavior.
School-related problems are often the source of many shifts in behavior, though your children may also be going through individual changes.
For example, many adolescents go through life phases. For most of them, they might not recognize their own mood or personality changes.
Organize positive reinforcement strategies to boost self-esteem
Behavior modification occurs with a consistent approach and praise. Working with your children and a supportive online course helps you build those techniques.
For instance, offer concise choices with a goal to the same outcome. Likewise, you can begin reinforcing positive behavior as you use proven routines.
For an easy-to-implement mini-course on delivering reinforcers, or rewards, you can join my parenting membership program, the Clever Kid Curriculum!
The guide will show you precise steps to encourage and motivate positive behavior.
Once you join our course above, you’ll also get The Ultimate List of Rewards to Improve your Child’s Behavior so be sure to read that for more tools to help you diminish behavioral issues.
Seek out a behavioral strategist for professional support
Experts support you in developing strategies to teach your children. Many methods use science-based techniques and worksheets to increase positive behavior.
Behavioral strategists propose ways to identify causes and will usually recommend approaches to tackle that poor behavior.
An instructional manual does not create positive behavior modification. Instead, helping your children develop self-awareness and identity comes with parental love.
Many times, you will feel frustrated, but you will have strategies guiding those coping skills. As Maya Angelou’s quote emphasizes, the beauty of a butterfly emerges from a metamorphosis stage of skills.
In the same light, think about your children’s behavior issues as small steps towards a beautiful personality. I’m currently offering free 1:1 consulting calls for parents that would like some individualized support. If you would like to book a call, just book an appointment here.
