Wednesday 12 July 2017

Temper Tantrums

The story of Akbar and Birbal clearly depicts that no one can beat tantrums thrown by children, women or the king. The tantrums of the emperor tires everybody. Today’s single-child phenomenon has exacerbated this problem. However, there is a limit to such tantrums or it turns into a challenging situation for the parents. Five year old Swayam was a classic case of such tantrums. He wanted everything that he asked for to be presented to him immediately or he would resort to shouting, throwing things away, abusing, destructing objects, tearing clothes away, banging the head on the wall, biting others, etc.  Of late he had resorted a new way of holding his breath after crying continuously. Then everybody would be frightened and they’d carry him to hospital. His lips would be black and blue, clenched fists. At first it appeared to be an epileptic seizure, but on close scrutiny, it was found to be ‘Breath holding spasm’. Swayam regained posture after administering first aid, however the moment he remembered what he was crying for, he again started his old ways. There are many cases of such children who get their parents on the verge of desperation.
Reasons– Tiredness, hunger, dip in blood glucose levels after a long gap of food consumption or in cases of fatigue caused post recuperation. Children who get hurt in the eye, epilepsy or facing brain disorders also exhibit such symptoms.
Psychological reasons- Children who have been separated from their mothers, who face change in surrounding environment, over-indulgence or over-strictness, depression, mental disorders, in order to seek attention, children who dislike parents due to discord between them and such cases cause children to throw tantrums.
Treatment- In the initial stages of this problem when the children are generally adamant, it is advisable to ignore them, since indulging in their tantrums can exacerbate the situation. However, ensure that they don’t hurt themselves when they become aggressive. If one resorts to caring for such tantrums or showing anger, hitting or simply hitting the child, then he gets more aggressive.
Psychiatric treatment- 1. It needs timely intervention to bring about a change in the behaviour or the ill effects thereupon of the parents.
  1. It is pertinent to enable the child to express his suppressed feelings through counselling or toys.
  2. The nervous energy of such children must be channelized through sports or hobbies like drawing, singing, dramatics, etc. in a positive manner.
  3. The good behaviour of a child must be appreciated and rewarded, however when he behaves badly, just ignore him to show your dislike for that behaviour.
  4. One must be able to identify with the child. Only a mature parent can control the child’s tantrums and raise him into a good child.
When all of this does not work, then one can take help of psychological treatment or homoeopathy. In case of Swayam, when normal methods of control did not prove effective, he was given a specific homoeopathic medicine after thorough examination along with flower therapy. His case was in control in about three months. He is now eight years old and a prolific Tabla player. He has also excelled in studies.
Parents must recognize the problems in their child early on , for when this does not happen, it leads to repenting later in life.
* Consult the concerned doctor for your health issues.

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