Help Kids Deal with BIG Feelings
Find strategies to help kids on this podcast!
Images used in this collages in this post are all courtesy of Dr. Robyn Silverman.
BIG Feelings Happen
BIG feelings happen...and they tend to happen with greater frequency and intensity when environmental stressors increase. Such is the case during a pandemic, as we are experiencing now. If BIG feelings seem mainstream at your home, you are not alone.
Per Dr. Robyn Silverman, "Many people are currently sheltering in place or socially distancing due to COVID-19– and that means a great deal of time with family in one space. Being quarantined during the coronavirus outbreak with kids can be tough as limited time alone and lots of family togetherness can breed some big feelings like anger and frustration. How can we help our children? How can we help ourselves?"
The good news is that we can help kids navigate these BIG feelings in supportive and meaningful ways. That was the subject of a podcast I did on Dr. Robyn Silverman's "How to Talk to Kids About Anything". We discussed anger and other BIG feelings, along with the strategies that can help resolve said feelings. You can find it all HERE. This podcast has been re-released to help parents during these trying times.
BIG feelings happen...and they tend to happen with greater frequency and intensity when environmental stressors increase.
Keeping Our Cool
Our ability to keep our cool and walk our children through the process of calming themselves down (co-regulation) is going to contribute significantly to their ability to learn self-regulation skills, or the ability to calm themselves down. We are the model for how this looks. Our kids are always observing us to see how to handle things. Our kids rely on us to show them the way.
Our kids are always observing us to see how to handle things. Our kids rely on us to show them the way.
We Don't Have to Do it Perfectly
We don't have to be perfect in our responses because, let's face it, there's no such thing. We are all human beings and we are not exempt from our own faults and foibles. We will have our own feelings, just as our children will have theirs. (Still, let's remind ourselves that we are the bigger people in the bigger bodies with the bigger brains. We are the only hope our kids have in learning better ways to manage the BIG feelings that come along.)
Still, let's remind ourselves that we are the bigger people in the bigger bodies with the bigger brains. We are the only hope our kids have in learning better ways to manage the BIG feelings that come along.
What You'll Learn
Here are just a few of the things you'll learn on this podcast, as shared on Dr. Robyn's site:
- How to co-regulate
- How to get off the anger merry-go-round.
- How to use “a bug and a wish.”
- How to help kids realize the anger cues
- How to construct a mad box and why
- How to process the feelings and interactions after the incident is over.
- Speaking out loud about our own anger and how we process it
- N.O.W. Learn how to Normalize, Offer opportunities/strategies, Work with children on managing big feelings
All That and More
You'll find all of the above and MORE when you listen in to this perennial favorite podcast on helping kids strike a balance when it comes to dealing with BIG feelings!
More Help for Younger Kids
Links will be added below, as the new post goes live.
Check out this FREE DOWNLOAD workbook to help kids understand the Coronavirus, calm their fears and empower them to help slow the spread.
Check out our infographic to help younger kids understand the Coronavirus.
COVID19 and Coping: The Series
If you need even more help, like help with routines, sibling rivalry and handling boredom, be sure to see our COVID-19 Coping Series for Families.
Be well,
Wendy Young, LMSW, BCD, is the founder of Kidlutions and co-author of BLOOM: 50 Things to Say, Think and Do with Anxious, Angry and Over-the-Top Kids, co-creator of BLOOM Brainsmarts, and creator of The Joyful Parent. She is the author of numerous workbooks and resources to help from the preschool through the teen years.
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