04/03/2024
Great thing to reflect on: if an adult can’t communicate, express their anger, or cope with frustration— why would a 7 year old be able to? Children’s nervous system capacity is shaped by the interactions they watch and receive. When overstimulated, children intuitively look to the adults around them. What they’re saying is “help me make sense of this” and “am I safe?” A regulated adult can see the child’s capacity as different from their own. They don’t see their children’s tears or tantrums as a personal insult or disrespect. Or something to dismiss. They don’t expect children to be robots or stoic. Their emotional stability manifests as consistent behavior. The child learns: “this adult I can trust. I know how they’ll react”
Instead of punishing or shaming, they can help the child through big emotions. And at the end of the interaction, there’s a deeper connection. A chronically dysregulated adult cannot cope with frustration or tantrums. They see their child’s emotions as a burden and use punishment in an attempt to quickly get them out of that emotion. This works— temporarily. Usually because the child is filled with fear. But after the interaction there is a loss of trust and connection for that child.
We need to as a society take a look in the mirror and see where our level of regulation is currently at. Then, we need to develop patience for children who are still learning to cope with boredom, confusion, rejection, and the daily disappointments in life.
By being the calm stable presence we change the future generation