Parenting emotional preschooler who is angry at the world.

[LEB]

My preschool age son can be a sweet, thoughtful, empathetic & gentle boy, but his ability to manage his emotions, especially his anger, during these last few months of lockdown is becoming a struggle. He is so quick to anger, blame someone else, and sometimes become aggressive with his sister or himself, which is very concerning. He reacts poorly to things you would expect from a toddler (eg, not getting his way, sharing, being "told off" etc) and has also started saying things like "I hate myself/my life/you" and "my brain hurts and I don't know what to do" when upset and overwhelmed. We are all trying our best to support him & help him understand/manage his feelings, but I would love to get advice from anyone else who has experienced similar. I know this is an "unprecedented time" & Covid has messed us all around, but I want to give him, and the rest of the family, the tools to get through this & beyond.

[Soberlicious96]

Dear LEB,

Welcome to Beyond Blue and well done for reaching out.

I feel I should start by telling you that I am not a parent myself, so I would just like to offer one small piece of advice; if you would like to click on the link below, you many find some helpful hints on how to support him through this challenging time?

https://www.beyondblue.org.au/personal-best/pillar/supporting-others/how-to-support-your-anxious-child

In the meantime, I'm sure that there are other people on here who ARE parents, and who may have some wonderful advice to offer. I just responded because I wanted you to know that your post has been seen by at least one person; me!

Anyway, take care and remember, you can come back here as much as you like.

Regards, from someone who is a 'Mum' to a furry baby only! xo

[Anzee]

My 4yo is behaving in a similar way at the moment, she is even hitting and kicking me and when I ask her what is making her so upset she says she doesn’t know and she can’t help it. She has been threatening to hit and punch people as well and I’ve asked her where she learnt this kind of language and she said other adults but I don’t think anyone has been talking that way around her. Before regional vic opened up a bit she was miserable and crying a lot but she told me then that she misses all her friends and she hates the rona birus (coronavirus). I am worried about this new agressive behaviour but I also feel like this pandemic has put a lot of fear and unknown in the little ones and them not being able to go out and do normal stuff. I have got some play therapy lined up for us because we went through a traumatic experience in April where I ended up in ICU and not allowed to see my kids, but we have a lot on our plate at the moment so I’ve told the psych I will contact her once things settle down.

Have you tried asking him if there’s anything in particular bothering him? Or if he’s just finding it hard to manage his emotions. It’s so hard trying to parent little ones during this time.