When children get angry or frustrated and feel out of control and out of power, they throw tantrums. It is their means to express these feelings and gain fast attention. By applying some of the ideas from Chinese ALternative Medicine, a parent can help return a child back to the child’s Zen state.

Remember you are in control of the situation which is a tenet taught many in Chinese Alternative medicine. Our first reaction may be to punish the child or give the child what they want. Stop. Do not punish your child and do not reward him/her. In doing so, you are feeding attention to the tantrum and your child will expect attention with every tantrum. If throwing a tantrum receives your attention, then you child will keep throwing them when they need to feel power.

So, what should you do? Stay in control by ignoring the tantrum all together. If your child is screaming and yelling then simply stay calm and ignore it.

Some children may cause harm to themselves when acting out like this and it is important that you keep them safe or if needed, keep them away from others and in a separate area. Do whatever you need to do to make sure your child doesn’t get hurt, but do it in a controlled manner.

What do you do if you are in public and your child throws a tantrum?

First thing to do is immediately take your child out of the public area and into a quiet area like your car. You can put your child in your car and buckle them in their seat and then shut the doors. Make sure that there is enough air. Then wait outside of the car until the tantrum ends.

Wait out the tantrum and ignore the behavior. Once your child is finished then you can talk to them. After your child is calm, explain to them why that behavior is not acceptable. Let your child know that they can talk to you about their feelings, instead of acting out.

It’s also important to consider the health of your child if you see that tantrums are persistent and usual. In this case, there are many natural remedies, such as chinese medicine and alternative medicine to help calm a child that is overactive and hypersensitive.