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[quote=Anonymous]My DS went through this at age 9-10 in 3rd grade but also had issues at school. He did therapy with a male therapist which made a big difference. We focused heavily on sleep routine, strict screen limits, not allowing hangry meltdowns, and lots of routine, structure, and physical activity.

Most importantly, he needed to learn how to deal with frustration and managing emotions. We stressed that he had to be allowed to experience his emotions, particularly negative ones, but had to learn new ways to deal with them. He needed to be validated when he experienced anger, sadness, frustration, annoyance, or boredom. Too often parents want to stop the emotion (bc it makes them uncomfortable) rather than teaching and modeling how to deal with that emotion. For example, if they never experience boredom, they don’t know how to deal with it. I had a rule that no screens were allowed on car rides. They were forced to experience boredom which believe me, was previously a huge trigger of crazy behavior. Now he is fine with it.

My kid also finally understands how important exercise and physical activity is to managing tough emotions. We allowed him to walk home from school everyday in 4th and 5th grade. We got a backyard trampoline and he would jump on it daily to decompress. He would bounce a ball in the basement when he was mad about something a kid did at school. We did family bike rides. In the summer, he did all day outdoor camps. He was so tired at night that going to bed finally became easy. He now does 2 sports and it’s been life changing.

He is in 6th grade and back to being a kind, considerate, and well behaved kid. He even recognizes the difference. [/quote]

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