How to help⬇️

It's time to REFRAME your thinking.
Often, the behaviours of highly sensitive children are labelled as 'difficult' - as if they do everything on purpose and with manipulation in mind.

What's really happening is that our sensitive children are experiencing their reality in a different way and it feels PHYSICALLY DIFFERENT to how others are perceiving the same environment.
What may be 'no big deal' to us or to another child, can feel really overwhelming to a sensitive child. The resulting behaviour reflects that overwhelm and is NOT an indication that they are difficult, naughty or that something is wrong with them. We just all have different brains.

When we REFRAME our thinking to understand our sensitive children, respect their difference and identify that they need more help, we're more likely to view them in a better light and become less triggered by their behaviour.

🍝refusing a new food? That food might smell stronger and more potent to them. The texture may look unfamiliar and it may trigger anxiety.

👟avoiding putting shoes on? The sequencing of stopping their current activity, finding the shoes, opening them, putting them on the correct feet then closing them (and their feet feeling different) might feel like a mammoth task they cant do alone.

😡getting angry out of nowhere? They might be too hot and can't sequence taking a layer off. Missed hunger cues and now feel painfully empty. Misunderstood the routine and now feel like they've missed out on something.

🫠repeating a strange noise? They might be self-soothing with something that feels good in their body. They might be regulating themselves with something familiar and repetitive. They might be communicating to you that things feel off and they need a little more connection and support.

When we ask the right questions, we can act as detectives and get to the bottom of what is going on for our sensitive kids and how we can best help them through. This isn't 'mollycoddling' or 'spoiling' them - you're meeting their needs.

Share this with a parent or educator who will appreciate this reminder.

You've got this.

Click here to view the post