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Globetrotter
08-31-2013, 06:53 PM
DS (10 - is that a preteen?) has had a temper for a while now, but lately it's gotten worse. This summer we spent a lot of time with family and it really got out of control, and it seems to be continuing. For instance, dh corrected something on his paper and he scrunched it up and tore it (granted, there was just one line of work as he had just started). Yesterday his sister pissed him off and he threw a shoe in her direction! The other day he hit her when he perceived teasing, and that of course escalated into a fight. He cannot handle teasing at all, and I'm working with dd to leave him alone.

He doesn't seem to know how to manage his anger, but only in relation to immediate family and, recently, his close cousins :( At school he is an angel, perfectly behaved, never been punished even ONCE since kg. He is the model child there and has tons of friends and was voted the best friend and best behaved lol. Even at home, 99% of the time he is the sweetest thing, plays well with his sister as long as she doesn't tease him, and generally well behaved. However, when he does get very angry he doesn't seem to know how to control it. I think he takes after dh and, to some degree, me as we both have tempers. For us as adults, it's worse when we are stressed and tired.

I have tried to teach him to stop and count to ten, take a deep breath, etc.. but in the heat of the moment I don't think he can handle it his emotions.

I do think sleep may be a bit of an issue since we had a jam-packed summer with lots of late nights and different dynamics since we were visiting family, but he's not taking allergy meds regularly (some allergy meds have caused problems in the past). Just wondering if anyone has suggestions.

hillview
08-31-2013, 07:26 PM
I took DS1 (7 at the time) to a therapist after his anger was causing issues at school. 3 sessions and he was WAY better and it is not an issue at all anymore (and his teachers adore him). DS1 is a very emotional kid so help with emotions is a big help for him.

Globetrotter
08-31-2013, 11:07 PM
Yes, ds is also emotional. I don't know how he would react to a therapist but maybe I could benefit from going to one to get ideas first, then see.

fedoragirl
09-01-2013, 12:28 AM
DS is almost 2 and has a temper. In his case, it's a lot of impulsiveness. I have a similar personality and I am not 2 or 10. Just throwing it out there that it could be that if he does something in the heat of the moment and regrets it immediately--that's being impulsive.

Globetrotter
09-01-2013, 04:13 PM
fedoragirl, I don't know if he's impulsive, but he is certainly very intense, not the laid back type who takes things in stride.

I went to look for books on Amazon, and discovered I had ordered a book years ago when he had his allergy meds reaction, but I never had to use it once we figured out what was wrong!

So I'm starting with this book and will go from there.

http://www.amazon.com/Take-Grrrr-Anger-Laugh-Learn/dp/1575421178/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1378066247&sr=8-1&keywords=take+the+grr+out+of+anger

kboyle
09-02-2013, 08:21 PM
fedoragirl, I don't know if he's impulsive, but he is certainly very intense, not the laid back type who takes things in stride.

I went to look for books on Amazon, and discovered I had ordered a book years ago when he had his allergy meds reaction, but I never had to use it once we figured out what was wrong!

So I'm starting with this book and will go from there.

http://www.amazon.com/Take-Grrrr-Anger-Laugh-Learn/dp/1575421178/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1378066247&sr=8-1&keywords=take+the+grr+out+of+anger

thanks for suggesting this book! its available at our library, so i plan on getting it for ds1 tomorrow! ds1 doesn't have too bad of an anger issue, but compared to the rest of the family (dh, ds2&ds3) hes a bit intesnse...he gets it from me lol. being 10 i just recently got him a Boys Body book since they'll be doing the 'family living' chapters this yr in 5th grade and will learn about puberty and such. the Laugh & Learn series that this anger book is in looks great. i also reserved one about being rude, one about dealing with siblings, and one about procrastination :) luckily ds1 is a VORACIOUS reader, so i know he'll read them even if it's not a chapter book. he LOVEs informational stuff!