Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder or ADHD is a condition concerning improper neuro development and is characterized by problems in being attentive, having hyper activity, or difficulty in controlling behavior. These children need special care and managing anger for children having ADHD may be a chronic issue for the parents. These methods of anger management for children with ADHD will hopefully help such children to manage anger successfully.
Here are the ten ways of anger management for children with ADHD and the parents can adopt these for better results.
1. Engage the child in exercises
Physical exercise is one of the best methods for enhancing the activities of the brain. Children with ADHD are usually found to be more hostile than the normal kids and therefore for teaching anger management to ADHD children they must be engaged in workouts for promoting healthybrain function eventually reducing aggressiveness.
2. Record behavior of the child
Keeping records of the outbursts is another good way to management anger in ADHD Children. This should be done at home and also in school and include what caused the anger & when it occurred; his or her actions when not able to control anger; and what is the reaction of the peers.
3. Look for patterns
After compiling data you should look for pattern like whether the outbursts happen at the same time every day or after same time of taking medicines and try to find out what triggers the explosions. Finding these will help you to plan proper course of action.
4. Discussing with the child
Discussions based on the trend and pattern of anger helps anger management for children with ADHD. You must try to get clues about what provokes the child and you should teach the child what to do in case of frustration like to raise hand when asking for help.
5. Looking at the diet
Diet is also a vital factor to be looked at. Generally children suffering from ADHD lack in Magnesium and Zinc. So having a proper diet can help to reduce hyperactivity and restlessness. It was also seen that kids who have diet rich in sugary carbohydrates tend to have more mood swings and so looking at the diet plan is a must.
6. Expressing feelings in words
The most common cause of a child losing control is the inability to articulate frustration. So the parents must develop a way of putting feeling into words as a tool of anger management for children with ADHD. Teach the child the difference between irritations and enraging and train expressing feelings; as saying “I am angry” helps to prevent anger from turning into violence.
7. Recognizing early signs
Getting tense or feeling excessive pounding of heart etc are the early signs. Train the child to recognize and share these warnings for preventing escalation of anger.
8. Getting sleep
Children suffering from ADHD are often found to have disturbed sleep and this makes them moody. So you must ensure that your child have enough sleep by telling bedtime stories and developing a sleeping routine. If required, electronic gadgets are to be taken out.
9. Advising actions
Never tell your child what not do; rather you should focus on what he or she should do. This is a very good way of anger management for children with ADHD because brainstorming different ideas helps to anger to melt down.
10. Diffuse tough situations
Diffusing tough situations with humor and making him or her understand that you are on their sides also helps to mange anger efficiently.
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