Punishing DD

EVA116

This may be a stupid question but I am nervous on how to punish DD. Lately she has been throwing major tantrums....

I know most toddlers do this but should I punish different because she has SPD and major speech issues?

Right now I have tried time out (not working) and firmly telling her no. I have also tried to talk and let her know what she did wrong. Sometimes she throws tantrums when we are working on therapy things...should I punish then or just let it go?

 

kcisthebombdotcom

My son also has sensory issues and at the age your DD is at was nonverbal. We utilize positive discipline and have found it very effective.

I found this website helpful in implementing it with a young toddler:

www.ahaparenting.com

GL!

mommytoconnor

My son has SPD as well and I have struggled with tantrums, that was before his therapy started.  I have found that with keeping him on a sensory diet has helped tantrums immensly.  His therapist said that if he tantrums try to ignore it and walk away.  Redirecting my son never worked well and discipline he finds tremendously funny.  So he would throw himself down and I would walk right past him, not saying a word.  He would stop very quickly because he wasn't getting attention for his behavior.

lindzed

I really think the tantrums are a way of telling you something not a behavior problem.  For me when I started paying attention to what was actually causing them they got so much better.  I read once to imagine yourself on a roller coaster and someone asking you to do the same things you push your child to do.  That is often how our kids with SPD feel.  I found ignoring my sons tantrums was a huge mistake for me.  He was communicating in his own way with his tantrums and my ignoring them made him retreat into his own world even more.  Now I try to figure out the cause and then help him to communicate that cause without the tantrum.  Good luck.

funchicken

I think figuring out what's triggering the tantrums is really important.  I also think it's important at that age to set your home up as a "yes" environment.  If there are things you don't want her to touch or play with, put them away or make it impossible to access them (ex: we don't have a TV in the living room.  My younger DD is obsessed with remotes and things with buttons and I don't want to have to redirect her from that all day long).  There's pretty much nothing my kids aren't allowed to play with in our living room, and it's very safe, so I rarely have to redirect them from things when we're in there.

We just started OT with my older DD (she has SPD), and I've noticed that depending on what they do in therapy she can be very off for the rest of the day.  I've decided that immediately after therapy we need to have a calming/centering activity and a snack to get her back on track. 

When we work on therapy things at home, I usually incorporate it into the beginning of another activity and break them up a lot throughout the day.  If she wants to draw we spend 5-10 minutes practicing holding the pencil correctly.  If she wants to do play-doh, we spend the first 10 minutes doing the activities the therapist taught us.  Before bath time we do the strengthening poses in the living room together.  Some of the things we work on take a lot of concentration, and I try to avoid her getting to the point of frustration.  DD tends to give up when she's frustrated, so we keep it really positive and do things in shorter chunks throughout the day. 

EVA116

Thank you ladies. It is just hard when you have family telling you to discipline her more.

Good to know about time-out....will not be doing that again for a while. I have talked with her therapists and we are trying new things to help with the tantrums.

I am sorry I used the word punish....I meant discipline.

Thanks again for all the tips!

funchicken

EVA116:

Thank you ladies. It is just hard when you have family telling you to discipline her more.

Good to know about time-out....will not be doing that again for a while. I have talked with her therapists and we are trying new things to help with the tantrums.

I am sorry I used the word punish....I meant discipline.

Thanks again for all the tips!

I totally understand the pressure from others.  People were always giving me "suggestions" on how to handle DD even though I never asked for advice.