3 Ways to Help Your Child Calm Down

One of the most frustrating things as a parent is dealing with melt downs! Children and adolescents both can suffer from the dreaded melt down. It ranges from an over tired toddler, screaming on the floor to a ticked off teenager slamming the door in your face. Here are 5 valuable tips that can help your and your child survive a temper tantrum.

1. Help your child calm down or regulate by taking 10 deep breaths. Sometimes children’s brains become so upset that they have a hard time regulating their emotions on their own. That is when parents can step in and help with coregulating their child. Taking 10 deep breathes resets your brain chemistry and allows your body to stop producing the stress hormone, cortisol, at such a high rate. This allows our brain time to calm down and look at what is happening more objectively, allowing us to think more calmly.
2. Give your child sour candy to suck on. This may not seem counter productive for you, the parent, when you feel like your at war with your child. This actually helps them regulate! When your brain tastes something, especially sour, it creates a somatosensory reaction or has your brain focus on this aspect of functioning rather than why it is so upset. It gives your brain a minute to reset and calm down, ending the tantrum.
3. Let your child smell essential oils or anything that smells good to them. This works for the same reason that giving them sour candy works! If your child suffers from multiple melt downs, this can create a great bonding moment. Let your child pick out their favorite scent. Then tell them to carry around a lotion or spray, smelling it whenever they begin to get upset. This is a great way to promote self regulation and prevent a tantrum from happening (if your child is mature enough for this).

Surviving tantrums is essential to parenthood. Having quick tips to help can be a life saver. Its essential that as a parent you can help your child learn how to regulate their emotions in healthy ways. It also helps us understand our children if we can understand a bit of what is going on in their brain. Conquering meltdowns is possible!