Help he has hit the seven thing!
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- Category: Blog Monday - DadTalk
So Jasper turned seven in May and I have to say that over the last few months he has been a bit of a bugger!
His attitude is a real nightmare. He talks back, shouts, suffers major mood swings, stamps around, blames everyone else for everything, is irritable, can’t settle, cries at the drop of a hat (or toy!) doesn’t listen, storms off, has a retort for everything!
Where did my Jasper go and who is this kid in my house? I can’t help but recall the hilarious clip of Harry Enfield’s Kevin the teenager character, who, at the stroke of midnight on his 13th birthday undergoes a complete character change in front of his parents. I fear a similar phenomenon has occurred!
I must fess up, I am REALLY struggling with this new season that Jasper is going through. I’ve been told by medical mates that he is simply adjusting to a surge of testosterone racing through his body and will settle again in to the lovely little chap who is a pleasure to be around.
That’s all great but today, this week, right now he really is hard to control and be around. I feel like everything I say as dad is like a spark that sets off a combustion explosion of attitude. “I, ME, IT’S NOT FAIR” detonate like fireworks of ballistic proportion that seriously exaggerate the situation.
My all time favourite was one evening last week whilst on our Staycation (have to say really NOT the way forward!!). When asked which he would prefer, a bath or shower. He morphs into King Kong with shouts of “IT’S NOT FAIR” and “I ALWAYS” folllowed by cries of “WELL I’M NOT GOING TO WASH MYSELF” and “I HAVE THE RIGHT TO BE STINKY”. After MUCH protesting and running around the house, 15 minutes later he was in the shower. What I wasn’t prepared for was the return of King Kong when he was told it was time to get out! *sign*
If you have a 7 year old testosterone monster rampaging through your house then here are some tips!
- Support your child identify their emotions. It’s vital that we help them learn how to say how they feels for example are they sad, angry, embarrassed.
- Help them identify what they need in the situation to help handle the emotion they are feeling, for example do they need time alone or a hug. Can they express their feelings in words or in a drawing?
- Teach them how to take a breath, count to 10 or take time out when they are feeling strong negative emotion. It’s always worth remembering that as a parent we need to role-model these behaviours yourself and be comfortable with our own emotions.
