You’re building memories for them – make them as positive as you can. Remember to do whatever it takes to enjoy the holidays with your family. Your kids are special and you are a great parent. If they feel overwhelmed or out of control, let them find a quiet spot and retreat in whatever way works best for them.Īnd don’t apologize – for them or for yourself. Work out a signal if your kids are old enough, and respect it. It’s important to embrace our kids – intensities and all – and find ways to help them manage those emotions wherever they are. This part, the letting go, is always the hardest for me. I cringe when my son speaks to an adult in an overly-familiar way – more like a peer than a kid. I hurt for my kids when they act different. In fact, some parents with kids like ours don’t get it either. It doesn’t matter who they are – your mom, aunt, cousin, best friend, a stranger in line behind you waiting to see Santa – if they haven’t walked this road themselves, they just won’t get it. And the only people who will ever truly understand what you go through day in and day out in another parent of an intense child.Įveryone else can only see bad behavior and/or bad parenting. I’m going to be really honest here – no matter what anyone thinks, parenting an emotionally intense gifted or a twice-exceptional child is not easy. Managing Your Child’s Intensity by Letting Go of Your Expectations For Others’ Approval Honestly, I’d rather let my kids become antisocial and hole up in an unused room with a video than become impulsive and ruin his or her own evening. SENG, small toys, and if we’ll be gone a long time, I download a movie to the iPad or another device and bring headphones. And their kids weren’t climbing to the top of stairwells, running around corners and colliding with adults, or leading a rousing rendition of “Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer” to grandma’s face and finishing the song doubled over in hysterics at the image he created for himself of Grandma’s face imprinted with a hoof print. It was exhausting, and I felt like a horrible parent.Īfter all, there were other moms at the parties we went to with kids the same age as mine. And they always seemed to get into trouble wherever we went during the holidays. I was semi-prepared for the overstimulation and over-tiredness all kids seem to experience this time of the year, but from the beginning, my kids just seemed a more… off. Time was an exciting blur from late November through early January. My birthday kicked everything off, followed by Thanksgiving, several other family members’ birthdays, Christmas, New Year’s Eve, and more birthdays. Ever since I was a little girl, I looked forward to the holidays.
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