When your children tantrum, you probably have tried your best to overcome it where you have to be more patient. Moreover, if it happens at night, you may not know what to do. It is also important for you to know the causes of their tantrums that often happen at night so that it will be easier for you to calm them down.
Read also: 7 Ways to Overcome Children Having Trouble Sleeping at Night
Recognizing Tantrums on Children
Tantrum is a child’s behaviour as their response to something that they do not like. The reaction can be anger, aggressiveness, or frustration. The forms of tantrums in toddlers can be crying, shouting, hitting, throwing stuff, pushing others or things, biting or even holding their breath.
Generally, it happens sometimes, but it can happen at night. As the children get older, the duration and the severity will decrease naturally. If the children are 18 to 60 months old, usually they will tantrum for a half to 1 minute.
The Causes of Tantrum on Children
If you find that your children tantrum, it may happen because of several conditions as you are able to read below.
1. “Night Terrors”
What does “night terror” mean? It is an extreme terror of children towards new environment that they face. Their response can be crying or shouting or even anxious all night. It can happen when they sleep alone in their room without their parents for the first time or when they have a nightmare.
It can also happen because they are very tired. According to the etiology side, there is a relationship between excessive physical activities and fatigue with nigh terror that experienced by children.
Read also: 7 Most Popular Shortest Bedtime Stories Ever
2. Colic
It is estimated that colic affects 5%-40% of children in the world and often happens at night. The signs of colic are crying all of a sudden, hard to be calmed down, easily angry, shouting for no reason, rosy face, and pulling their legs and tensing the stomach.
What is the cause of colic? It can happen because of cow’s milk protein allergy. The symptoms can be rash on their cheeks. If your baby gets mom’s milk, it is better for mom to stop consuming cow’s products such as cheese, yoghurt, butter, etc. If your baby drinks formula milk, it is better to choose the hypoallergenic one.
3. The Children are sick or injured
For your information, the language ability of your children under 3 years old just reach 75%. So, they express their inconvenience through crying.
4. Disturbances around the children’s sleeping area
When you see that they tantrum, you have to check whether there is something that makes them wake up suddenly such as mosquitos, the temperature of the room or even their diapers. When your children feel uncomfortable because of these things, they will express it.
5. Lack of Sleep
If your children lack sleep, they can tantrum. So, you have to make sure that your children get enough sleep. If your children are less than 1 year old, they need 14 to 17 hours of sleep in a day including a nap. If your children are 1 to 2 years old, they need 11 to 14 hours to sleep in a day. Meanwhile, if the children are 3 to 4 years old, they need 10 to 13 hours of sleeping.
6. Too much duration of screen time
If your children get excessive screen time, it can be a risk of tantrum before sleeping. If your children are 1 to 4 years old, it is better if they do not use smartphones for more than an hour.
How to Overcome Tantrum on Children
If you have known the causes of their tantrum, then you need to know how to calm them down. So, here are several ways that you can do to calm down your children when they tantrum.
1. Calm Yourself Down
The first thing that you have to do is to calm yourself down. To do it, you can take a deep breath and exhale and then you can drink a glass of warm water.
2. Understand Their Tantrum
When you calm your children down, you have to make sure that you do not get emotional or say ‘yes’ to their unreasonable demands. You are only able to say ‘yes’ for their physical needs and their safety.
You are able to leave them for a while in their room until they stop. If you do this, make sure that your children are in a safe position and there are no harmful things.
3. Avoid Physical Punishment
Giving physical punishment is not recommended. It is because it can only increase their tantrum behaviour. If you apply physical punishment, it means that you teach them to do violence every time they are angry or frustrated.
How to Prevent Tantrum from Happening
Can we prevent children’s tantrums from happening? Well, preventing tantrums is related to anger management. So, as parents, you need to learn several skills below.
1. Communicate well
You have to make sure that you do not shout or debate in front of your children. Every day, you have to ask your children about their feelings. By validating their feelings, it can make them comfortable.
2. Listen to Their Opinions and Feelings
If you often prohibit your children, you have to avoid it. You can do that if it is related to their health and safety. You also have to give them positive attention such as reading a book for them, playing together, and involving them in daily activities at home such as cooking, cleaning or gardening.
3. Consult an Expert
Tantrums in toddlers are normal, but you are able to consult a doctor or a psychologist if your children show uncommon characteristics of tantrum.
4. Meet the Needs of Children
You have to make sure that your children get enough sleep and they have a regular diet to decrease the risk of tantrum. Food that contains protein, carbohydrate, fat, vitamins, and minerals need to be provided daily.
If you give them food with good nutrition for them, their digestion will be healthy so that their mood will be good as well. As a result, they will be able to think optimally and can express their emotion and minimize the possibility of tantrums.
