Surviving the Terrible Twos

Children are adorable. They're cute and fun to play with - until they get cranky and start throwing a fit. Screaming, crying, biting, throwing things or banging heads on the walls are all signs of a tantrum. This is very common among kids going through what we call the "terrible twos".

The terrible twos is not a pretty stage to deal with. This normally kicks in during a child's second or third year when kids are no longer babies and have developed the ability to walk, run and do things they were not able to do when they were younger.

Kids between this age have developed their own personal identity, and they want to show off that they are no longer babies type by insisting that they can do things on their own. They want to eat, take a bath and dress by themselves without any guidance. The problem is they don't have well-developed skills yet, and as parents, we just want to make sure that they do things properly so we dress them, give them a bath and feed them. This is the exact opposite of what they want.

In order to survive the terrible twos, we need to teach or explain our child how to handle their emotions, specifically their anger, properly. When my kid first started acting up, I would probably ignore her whenever she cried (as long as I knew that she was not hungry or hurt). Once she was done, I would give her my hand and tell her to show me what it was that she wanted (since she couldn't talk yet). We did this over and over, until she learned that she can come to me whenever she needs something instead of crying.

There are also tricks on how you can avoid tantrums. If you have to bring your child when you go out, for example, avoid doing it close to their naptime. Kids get cranky when they're sleepy. Instead, go after the child has his nap. One thing that I noticed is that kids get bored very easily, so when I have to bring my daughter to the doctor's clinic, I make sure that I have some food and toys in my bag. That way, she has something to get busy with while we wait and she doesn't have to get cranky and throw a tantrum.


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Dealing with child punishment and terrible- twos can be a real challenge. Visit Talkingtotoddlers.com today and find tips on how you can properly address these issues.