If you are a new mom just beginning to experience the new mom world you might have just heard about the rumors of the terrible twos. You also might be a mom that has experience with raising a toddler already and know what it is all about (or maybe you were one of the lucky ones and your kid’s toddler days were a walk in the park and now it is completely different with another kid of yours). Whether what stage of motherhood you are in, we all know or will learn that the days spent with our children as toddlers can be like a roller coaster ride.
Our toddlers will learn and experience the world in a new way like they have never before. They will develop riveting and heartwarming experiences that will make them feel happy, but also become their own little decision makers by saying “no” to you. Parenting then can become infuriating and stressful. Toddlers are trying to develop their own independence but also still depend on you for guidance and learning about the world around them. It can be very hard and complicated with the back and forth of happy smiles and laughing to then crying and throwing tantrums the next minute.
It’s a new stage for them and it might be for you too, but it’s nothing you should fear. You just need to help your kid cross over from the terrible twos into the terrific twos!
Here are 5 tips to help you survive your kid’s terrible twos and to hold onto your sanity during this time.
1. Control your emotions
If you are becoming frustrated, your child is likely to reflect and respond to your emotions too. Try to be calm and keep a cool head when dealing with your child’s outburst. Your child is less likely to remain in their tantrum if you are calm.
2. Plan your day ahead
Give your child a warning before leaving an activity. This can be if they are playing with a toy or another toddler. Also, planning around your toddler’s activities is important. Meals and nap times should be consistent and try to be around the same time. Tantrums are usually started when your child is feeling tired, hungry, or overwhelmed. So plan ahead with meals, snacks, and nap times to avoid these raging toddler tempers.
3. Teach them discipline
Discipline can sound like a negative term, but truly it helps a child learn to be safe and to teach them new things. A toddler can learn the difference between right and wrong, consequences of a decision, and how to control their life. When talking to your toddler, during a tantrum, you can give them two choices. One choice should be a positive and the other a negative. For instance, “You can choose to clean up this mess, or you can choose to go to timeout.”
Avoid making threats and allow your child to choose and learn the consequence of a positive or negative outcome. Your child is quickly learning, especially in their toddler stage, they are intelligent and will understand a lot more than you might think.
4. Be consistent
Being consistent with your discipline builds a foundation of stability and assurance for your child. Your toddler wants to be in the know and what to expect of themselves and their day.
5. Praise and reassure them
Praising your child for when they do something well encourages them in that behavior. You can give tell them you love them just because too! Children want to be reassured, especially if you are teaching discipline. Your love and reassurance teaches them a powerful message by learning how to express their emotions through words instead of a tantrum. Just remember this is a time where they are not sure how to communicate with words.