Behaviours that challenge
As children start to develop and grow, they can often go through phases of displaying behaviours that we as adults find challenging to address or manage.
Younger children often explore, test and push boundaries as they try to work out where they fit in with their peers and also to work out what they can and can't get away with, whilst building their own coping mechanisms and developing resilience. Behaviours can range from crying at the simplest of things through to full blown physical outbursts, all of which can be tiring for parents who are trying to support them. This is a normal developmental stage and to explore this further, we would suggest speaking with your health visitor.
Some behaviours may be a response to something specific that has happened in their life such as separation, bereavement or bullying and often have specific triggers whilst other behaviours may be linked to a medical or neurodevelopmental condition such as autism or ADHD and can be anxiety led, sensory triggered or due to the child's inability to articulate their frustrations.
What can you do?
There are lots of strategies out there for supporting behaviours that you may find challenging whether these are typical toddler type behaviours, autism related, demand avoidance or behaviours linked to emotional wellbeing. The section below will help you to identify courses, resources and information about services that may be able to help you on your journey to supporting these difficulties.
Courses such as the Webster Stratton Programme are a good starting point as they help to understand and support behaviours, emotional control and improved interactions. These courses are often pre-requisites for accessing other services.