Play Therapy Parenting Podcast
S2E33 - Biting, Aggression, and Emotional Overwhelm: Why Kids Act Out During Life Transitions—And How to Help
Jan 30, 2025
Explore the struggles children face during major life transitions like divorce. Discover how emotional overwhelm leads to behaviors such as biting and aggression. Learn practical, child-centered strategies for guiding kids through their feelings. The podcast offers insights on limit-setting techniques that nurture parent-child relationships while teaching emotional regulation. Get equipped with tools to handle these challenges with empathy and intentionality.
19:21
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Quick takeaways
- Children's aggressive behaviors like biting often signify emotional overwhelm during life transitions, not merely acts of defiance or misbehavior.
- Building a strong parent-child relationship through filial therapy and effective limit-setting fosters resilience and emotional regulation in children facing instability.
Deep dives
Understanding Trauma's Impact on Behavior
The episode addresses how a child's behavior can reflect internal emotional turmoil, particularly during significant life changes like a divorce. For example, a child who experiences multiple caregiver transitions, such as losing an au pair and navigating a parent's deployment, may act out due to feelings of instability and fear. Biting and aggression often manifest as age-appropriate reactions when a child lacks the emotional vocabulary to express their feelings. It emphasizes the need for parents to understand these behaviors as signals of deeper emotional struggles rather than mere defiance.
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