How to Help a Child Regulate Their Emotions
6 Steps to Helping Your Child Manage Their Emotions in a Healthy Way
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Just as learning to regulate physical sensations is first managed by attuned and connected caregivers, learning to regulate emotions happens in a similar way.
Although a child's natural temperament does play a role in their ability to self-regulate, they are strongly influenced by external factors like their home environment, as well as regular interactions with their caregivers and other adults. It starts with coregulation: consistent, warm, and responsive interactions that provide the support, coaching, and modelling children need to "understand, express, and modulate their thoughts, feelings, and behaviours." With repetition and maturity, this then evolves into self-regulation — the ability to do this independently.