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[quote=Anonymous]A few thoughts.

It does sound like it could be anxiety induced.  Our daughter who has anxiety can also focus overly on the negative in this way.  I joke that at some point she'll be a very good editor, quality control expert, etc.  She'll find the flaw in anything.  There is a need in life for people that can be critical, so remind yourself that it is a useful skill and just needs to be modulated.  (Hard when you're the one being criticized, which I often am!)  For anxiety, it helps to have clear expectations and schedules so the child knows what is coming, what the range of possibilities are, and to talk through potential scenarios and solutions.  Our therapist also said that we should focus on saying five positive things for every negative thing we say to her.

You might want to try the book "What to Do When you Grumble too much."  That might be a little old, but if you look at that on amazon, you might get some good ideas if you also look at the "people who viewed this bought..." list.  I often find great resources that way.

Finally, I'm not a big proponent of the major diet adjustments (eg Feingold).  I think they only work for a very small subset of kids.  That said, consistent nutrition is incredibly helpful.  I don't know if you ever saw the movie SuperSize Me, but one of the guy's main observations is that when he ate McDonald's for a month, he was in a terrible mood -- very irritable and depressed.  There's a fair amount of science that fish oil or omegas helps with mood, so we do fish oil supplements (not at an extreme level -- I think that's dangerous -- just the regular dosage).    Also make sure that he's not anemic.  I know from personal experience that if my iron levels are low I am pissed off by EVERYTHING.  Have the doctor tell you the actual levels and treat it if he's within the "low borderline" range -- the doctors will only diagnose anemia if the iron is extremely low, but from my experience it has a definite effect on mood well before it hits the "clinical" diagnostic level.

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