When a child throws tantrum it is very difficult for parents to calm her down or even keep calm themselves. Read on to learn about the things you can do to stop your child from throwing tantrums.Even though a child’s tantrum is normally short-lived, but most of the time it makes you lose your cool. You have to keep in mind that you are an adult and you need to behave well. It is natural that one gets disturbed when a child throws
tantrums, especially when you are in public, but you have to keep calm at that time.
Tantrums are often uncontrollable. But consider it as an opportunity for education. Tantrums are quite common and most children have tantrums sometime or another. Some children have one or more every day. So, the most important thing is that you are not alone. What you need to do is to understand and
stay calm and deal with it strategically.
Things to Do to Stop Children from Throwing Tantrums
Here are few things which you can do to stop your child from throwing tantrums.
1. Make Use of Short Phrases
Children immediately listen when they find they are heard. So, when your child throws tantrums repeat what she is saying till the time she is ready to listen to you. Now, tell her your deal or if possible, tell her to talk later when she cools down. Since your child is in the middle of tantrum, she may not listen to you immediately. Keep repeating your deal while she is throwing tantrums and try to calm her down.
2. Keep Passionate Tone of Voice
When your child is in the mid of tantrum, it is very important you talk to her in loving manner. No matter how many times you need to repeat a phrase, it should not affect your tone. Often when children see their parents calm, they calm down within minutes.
3. Make Use of Facial Expression and Hand Gestures
Since your child is in the mid of meltdown, she is not going to listen to you. But she will definitely see you. So, make use of facial expression and hand gestures to communicate with her. You should be lively and at the same time dramatic also so that it catches the attention of your child. When children observe that parents understand their needs, they feel valued and special.
4. Distract Her Attention
One of the most important and effective method of stopping tantrum is to divert your child. Try to have her attention completely to the other side. Here, you will have to use your presence of mind and must distract to something of your child’s interest. Children forget things very easily and quickly.
5. Pay Attention to the Reason Behind Tantrum Outbreak
Children do not always throw tantrum just to get your attention. There must be some reason that made your child have a meltdown. Try to figure out and solve it as soon as possible. You will see that as soon as your child’s need is met and message heard, she will immediately calm down.
Things to Say to Stop Children from Throwing Tantrums
- “Ask nicely for the toy and I will give you”. If your child is throwing tantrums to get something, tell her to ask properly so that you can give her. Show her that there is no need to scream or yell to have something.
- If there is a little time for supper, say, “Supper is almost ready, have a snack for the time being”.
- If your child has been doing homework for long, say, “You have been studying for long. Let’s take a break”.
- “Let’s read together”. This can be very helpful if you have been away from your child for long.
How to manage post-tantrum situations
- Do not give up or surrender to your child’s tantrums. This will only send wrong message to your child and will be problematic in the long run.
- Educate your child to make use of better ways to convey her message.
- Do not let the tantrum affect your relationship with your child.
- Tell your child that you love her and understand how she feels when angry.
- Talk to your child and help her express anger positively.
When your child throws tantrum in public and you are not able to calm her down, you should leave the place as soon as possible, even if you have to carry your child. Make sure your expectations from your child are age-appropriate. Give your child some freedom of choices so that she has control over some of her things. This will help avoid tantrums to a great extent.
Even though children throw tantrums and it is natural, if your child suffers from this problem often, you have to take action. Find out if there is any consistent problem or situation that disturbs your child and try to solve it as soon as possible. If you are not able to figure out, there is no harm in taking help from your doctor. He will be able to find out whether it is because of specific deficiency or not and give suggestions accordingly.
Why do children throw tantrums? What should parents do when children start throwing tantrums? How to stop a child from throwing tantrums? Discuss here. 
