When you were a new parent, you may have had a variety of concerns. These may have ranged from discovering birth marks to how much, or how little, your baby was eating and sleeping.
As your child became older, you were probably concerned about developmental landmarks. These included rolling over, sitting up, and eventually walking.
Now that your child is a toddler, however, you may notice other issues arise. One of these is the terrible twos. Toddlers and tantrums are normal, even though this behavior may take you by surprise. Some toddlers may become picky eaters or throw screaming tantrums.
Toddlers and tantrums are an obvious concern for many parents. Just as each child is unique, so, too, is the reason for throwing these tantrums. There may be a specific pattern to your child’s tantrums, so it’s really important to pay attention when they occur.
If your toddler is a picky eater, for example, you may be concerned that they’re not receiving enough calories. While the recommended daily caloric intake for a toddler will depend on their age, size, and activity level, they usually need 1,000-to-1,400 calories on a daily basis.
While your pediatrician can provide you with recommendations, including dietary supplements, as a parent, you are able to observe which foods your child likes and which they don’t. As long as your child is obtaining the nutrition they need to be healthy, having a picky eater can potentially make mealtime easier. If your toddler always throws a tantrum at meal time, it’s possible they are responding to your anxiety about receiving proper nutrition.
Since many toddlers are quite active during the day, it’s important for them to be able to calm down and sleep at night. According to a 2010 study in Child Development, this may also assist babies one year and older with enhancing skills.
If your toddler is still running around or otherwise active close to bedtime, you may want to give them a bath and then read them a story. Your toddler may also calm down when they listen to soft, relaxing music while being rocked.
Were you aware that your toddler’s brain is probably twice as active as yours? From the time they are born, up to approximately three years old, their brain develops faster than any other time throughout their life.
Many toddlers may become frustrated for a variety of reasons. They want to be able to perform new tasks even though they may not have the words to communicate this to you. When you observe your child attempting or practicing a new skill, assist them when asked and offer praise and encouragement.
Since your child first began to make sounds, you probably responded to around 50%-to-60% of these based on instinct. Around seven months old, babies begin to babble, or produce sounds that resemble speech.
As your child begins to form clear words, responding to these further enhances their vocabulary and speech development. Some toddlers may thrown tantrums when they don’t think their parents or caretakers understand them. If they ask for something to drink, for example, and you give them something to eat instead, this could cause obvious frustration.
While your child may completely bypass terrible twos behavior and tantrums, it’s still possible that they may be difficult from time-to-time. When dealing with the terrible twos, it’s important to be patient and listen carefully to your child.
True, some toddlers may want something that is not good for them, such as candy, or they may want to engage in physical activities around bedtime to avoid going to sleep. In this case, the obvious solution for some parents handling toddlers and tantrums is to say, “no.”
Ironically, the word, “no,” is often heard when dealing with toddler tantrums. Toddlers mimic the speech they hear around them, and the most obvious people to mimic are parents and other caretakers. If you tell your toddler “no” on a regular basis, don’t be surprised when they say this to you.
There are other ways to communicate “no” and potentially avoid the negative effects associated with toddlers and tantrums. You could distract them from candy with a slice of apple, or bouncing on the bed with the promise of their favorite story.