Calming Your Child: De-escalating Tantrums, Anxiety, Aggression, and Other Challenging Behaviors

(Paperback)

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Description

It's time for school, and your child refuses to put on her clothes. You can sense her anxiety and the impending tantrum. This familiar scene can make parents feel powerless, unable to calm their child's fears or the resultant negative behaviour.

Dame Sue Bagshaw, MD, and psychologist Michael Hempseed are here to tell you: there is hope! Tantrums and anger are common behaviours, but instead of blaming poor parenting or too much screen time,Calming Your Childlooks at the root causes, including anxiety, depression, and sensory issues, other psychological factors, explaining the research and helpful techniques in a simple, accessible way.

Every child is different, so this guidebook provides a variety of methods to strengthen your bond with your child and combat behaviour issues, all while gaining a better understanding of the way your child sees the world.

Reviews

"A fine book that has everything parents will need to help a distressed child."
Patch Adams, MD, bestselling author and Nobel Peace Prize nominee

"Calming Your Childis essential reading, whether you are a parent or not. It provides solid references and strategies to deal with the challenging task of raising a child and to prepare them for life as an adult in a turbulent, fast-paced society."
--Captain Kevin Sullivan, Author ofNo Man's Land: The Untold Story of Automation on QF72

"Dame Sue Bagshaw and Michael Hempseed share their profound insights derived from decades of working with children with mental health challenges and behavioural problems. The authors frame an argument that the behavioural problems expressed by these children are not intentional, but the consequences of being under a state of threat. Accepting this perspective leads to an optimistic strategy of calming the nervous system that promote feelings of safety."
--Stephen Porges,PhD and author ofThe Polyvagal Theory:Neurophysiological Foundations of Emotions, Attachment, Communication, and Self-regulation

Being a parent, caregiver, or someone around kids for any amount of time has its moments of exhaustion (physically and mentally), mainly because there are times when you dont always know the right answers or actions for unforeseen situations. Kids are essentially miniature versions of adults but (usually) less capable as adults, meaning they arent equipped to handle their emotions or other big situations as appropriately as someone older. In Calming Your Child, Dr. Bagshaw, and Michael Hempseed speak from experience and research on activities to try with your child(ren) to assist them with becoming the best versions of themselves with what is available.

Calming Your Child contains five parts (two sections) explaining the various types of behaviors that might come from a child and their probable reasons. As a parent and a worker in the mental health field, the information is a beneficial reminder for me and possibly unknown to other adults. From the multiple reasons why behaviors may happen, thankfully, there are options of coping skills that are helpful for the larger crowd of kids, and for the few that need more customization, the ideas are at least a starting point. The information is understandable and easily relatable.Rachel Dehning, Manhattan Book Review

Author Bio

Michael Hempseed holds an honors degree in psychology from the University of Canterbury and speaks all over New Zealand on topics such as suicide prevention, improving sleep, and trauma. His first book, Being A True Hero: Understanding and Preventing Suicide in Your Community, has been used by the New Zealand Police, New Zealand Army medics, and many more.

In 1995, Dame Sue Bagshaw, MD, established 198 Youth Health, a health center designed to care for the disadvantaged in the city of Christchurch, and in 2019, she was knighted for her services to young people. She is a senior lecturer of pediatrics at the Christchurch School of Medicine and the founder of The Collaborative Trust for Research and Training in Youth Health and Development.