Question
Our 10-year-old son has started having huge mood swings. He gets easily angry, grumpy, and irritable. What is the best way to handle mood swings? We provide consequences for misbehavior, but how do we handle things when he isn't misbehaving or disobeying but is generally unpleasant to be around?
Answer
Hello, and thank you for your question. In the interest of brevity, let's keep it very simple.
YOU do not need to handle your son's mood swings, but your son does. If he's "unpleasant to be around," I suggest telling him to go somewhere else. You can say something like, "Son, you are very unpleasant to be around now, so you'll need to leave this room and occupy yourself elsewhere for the next ____ minutes." And then follow through. Don't ask why he's in the mood he's in because it doesn't matter. Don't attempt to talk him out of his lousy mood. Do not let his lousy mood set the mood for the entire home. Children aren't ready for that kind of power. In summation, make his unpleasantness his problem to solve, not yours.
Wishing you pleasant company ahead!
Warmly,
Wendy Faucett
Certified Leadership Parenting Coach
wendyfaucett@gmail.com
Join ParentGuru and get all your parenting questions answered! Members can ask a question directly to John for $25/question (Non-members $45/question). Questions to the team of coaches are included with a paid membership.
