Understanding toddler tantrums

Learn about: Understanding toddler tantrums from Allison LaTona, MFT,...
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Understanding toddler tantrums

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Handling a toddler's tantrum starts with understanding what a tantrum actually is and it's importance. When toddlers are having a tantrum, it's an expression of an idea. They are moving, increasingly, towards autonomy, and they are discovering their preferences, their desires, the own opinions, and they are bumping up against different ideas and opinions; realizing they are separate. When they do that, they have big emotional storms that move through their bodies. They don't, yet, have the skill to regulate those emotions. What they need from us, is to sit with them and be reflective or be empathic of their feelings or idea. Simply contain their feelings, being present to them. Allowing for that full landscape of human emotion; sadness, frustration, disappointment, to move through their body. Allow for it to dissipate on its own, instead of distracting them or giving in on our limit. When we model tolerance of their intolerable feelings, we help them to tolerate their own feelings on their own. They have the experience of not getting what they want, which is a tremendous gift.

Learn about: Understanding toddler tantrums from Allison LaTona, MFT,...

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Allison LaTona, MFT

Parent Educator, Marriage & Family Therapist

Allison LaTona, MFT, is a marriage and family therapist, whose life-changing consultation groups provide a practical and compassionate roadmap for those navigating the journey of parenthood. LaTona has 18 years of experience counseling children, families, couples and individuals, and has facilitated groups in private practice, as well as at Santa Monica's Babygroup with Donna Holloran, MSW, for over a decade. La Tona is an author for Twigtale, an online resource for creating transition books for young children.  

Focusing on respectful parenting philosophies, the power of language, emotional intelligence, and a child's natural developmental capabilities, LaTona offers specific strategies and invaluable insights that ease the inherent challenges of contemporary parenthood. Her work empowers parents with the vision and tools to create thriving and fulfilling family lives, and fosters long-term connections within a supportive community. With 13 years "in the trenches" raising two young children of her own, LaTona's personal path complements her professional credentials. Her empathy, experience, and dedication fuel her passionate commitment to her work.

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