There is nothing quite as challenging as your kid being sad & unable to fully express why. ⁣

The other day, Nolan had a bad day at school. I felt helpless consoling him. He tried to explain what was wrong, but he mostly just felt sad. ⁣

It breaks my heart to see my happy kiddo hurting. But I know all I can do is listen, make sure he feels heard, and comfort him. ⁣

Moving forward, we’re going to focus on centering ourselves, creating coping strategies, and making sure he has something tangible to latch onto when he gets so upset. ⁣

On the flip side, we have also fully entered Meltdown City.

Here are tactics that are helping me keep calm as I teach Nolan how to communicate better:⁣⁣

1. Toddlers don’t understand contractions. When you say “don’t jump on the couch.” They hear “jump on the couch.” Redirect them with a statement like, “I see you want to jump, we’re going to go outside and jump where it’s safe.”⁣⁣

2. Meet them at their level. Identify what they’re feeling & tell them you understand. ⁣⁣

3. Don’t assume bad intentions. They didn’t knock over the toys because they’re a jerk. That’s an adult’s assumptions. Instead assume positive intent. They knocked the toys over because they want to play with you.⁣⁣

4. Establish rituals and routines. Routines teach how to do something & create habits. Rituals build connection. Think of when you were little if you had a special handshake with someone or a specific good night kiss with mom and dad. Those were rituals. The point of them was to build a connection. Routines are best shown to children by modeling or picture card so they have a visual of how to do something. For example, how to get dressed or how to wash hands.⁣⁣

What are some tactics that worked for you during meltdowns?