Anger is a normal human emotion. Everyone has the right to be angry, and children are no exception.
However, out-of-control anger can lead to physical and behavioral problems, making children aggressive and even making behaviors that hurt themselves and others.
Therefore, even children should learn to manage their anger.
Why should children learn to manage anger?
In one’s life, aggressiveness begins in early childhood. Children in this period cannot express their emotions through words. Compared with other times, aggressiveness is easier and stronger.
It is necessary for children to learn to control their emotions in early childhood, otherwise the increasingly aggressive emotions may affect their future relationships with classmates, friends and family.
A study also found that 1/7 of the people with aggressive childhood are more likely to suffer from poor academic performance, unemployment, violent tendencies and mental disorders during their growth.
Similar to other emotional reactions, anger can cause blood pressure to rise and hormone secretion (such as epinephrine) in the body to increase.
Let children learn anger management, not only can help children to eliminate their inner negative emotions, but also can reduce the adverse psychological and physiological reactions brought about by it.
Here are four suggestions to help children manage anger:
First, let children learn to express their anger reasonably.
It is not a good thing for what to suppress anger. If children can express their anger well, it is unlikely that there will be excessive outbreaks.
Try to communicate well with your child, and he may say to you, “I am angry because…”.
In daily life, parents should encourage their children to express their real needs and let them think about a way to satisfy themselves without hurting others.
While encouraging children to express their needs, they can also be guided to feel their own emotions and those of others in this way:
1. Guide children to express their feelings
Talk to children when they are calm or happy, and let them express their inner feelings. After that, children should also be encouraged to speak out how they feel when they are angry.
2. Let children observe the feelings of others
At ordinary times, children can also be taught to identify other people’s emotions. For example, when watching TV, they can say to their children: [This person looks very angry]. This method can also help children feel other people’s emotions.
Second, divert children’s attention
Moving children’s attention to positive things that interest them also helps to resolve anger.
However, this method is more practical for slightly older children or adolescents.
First of all, let children realize their anger, and then let them do some positive things to resolve the anger.
For example, you can let your child express his feelings by drawing or writing a diary. No matter the reason why he is angry is what, he can face his anger in this way.
However, if this method is not used well and fails to properly vent the child’s anger, it may cause blood pressure rise or depression, thus endangering the child’s health.
Third, let children learn to calm down
Every child should learn how to calm his emotions and control external behaviors.
When the child is angry, he can find another room to let the child stay, let him pull out of the angry environment, rest for a while to calm down.
In addition, deep breathing, walking outdoors, being alone, doing yoga, martial arts or other exercises may also help children calm down.
If the child is interested in these activities, he can do some physical training at ordinary times.
Some children respond well to the training courses, so they can try karate or other martial arts exercises. Some children are more comfortable with relaxing activities, such as yoga or meditation, which allows them to focus on breathing and muscle stretching.
Fourth, issues of principle cannot be condoned.
It is not good to suppress anger blindly, but it is not allowed to indulge children’s bad behavior in order to let children vent their emotions. On the contrary, it will encourage children to make improper actions repeatedly.
If the child vents his emotions willfully, his parents should deal with it rationally and let the child bear the possible consequences of his own behavior.
For example, if a child breaks his toy when he loses his temper, he should not replace it with a new toy immediately.
For example, if he loses his temper and breaks the things of his family or others, he should let the children do more housework or compensate within his ability.
When do you need to ask a doctor?
If your child often loses control of his emotions and even affects his relationship with his family and friends, and as a parent, you can do nothing about it, then you should ask a professional doctor for help.
Reliable psychologists or mental health experts will help you and your child through various methods to change the child’s thinking and way of doing things, thus improving his behavior.
Editor: Yidan