Are You Concerned That Your Toddler Needs Behavioral Therapy?
To determine whether your child requires professional behavioral therapy for toddlers, it’s essential to know the signs. Perhaps your toddler struggles to self-soothe or calm down, only to become upset by the littlest change in their routine. Maybe your youngster seems bothered by a new addition or change to the family when hearing or observing conflict at home or during transitions between activities or places.
Another common sign is that they appear anxious or become angry to the extent that they scream, run, hit, fling objects or throw themselves on the floor when they don’t get their way. Or perhaps when you ask them to listen or raise your voice in frustration, the yelling, crying or screeching worsens.
At Courageous Kids Counseling, we believe that early intervention with toddler behavior therapy is the ideal way to start developing your child’s understanding of their feelings and how to express them in a healthier way. Our team of highly skilled counselors provides your child with the individualized attention they need to learn, adapt, and flourish.
Young Children Express Their Emotions in Different Ways
Children are still learning to be self-aware. They often act on impulses and are not conscious of what they are doing or why they are doing it. This can lead them to experience emotional dysregulation and struggle with anger, frustration, separation anxiety, and other “big emotions.”
Although it is not always clear to parents, this is not a sign of deliberate defiance. Preschoolers react to situations without thinking about the consequences or considering better ways to manage them. Toddlers also don’t have the vocabulary to describe their emotions or manage strong feelings without becoming overwhelmed. This can all lead to frustrated children and parents who are totally on different pages about how to respond or even what good behavior should look like.
Behavioral issues can impact young children in their ability to manage changes to their routines or transitions between activities. For instance, when toddlers are given little choice about the next activity or feel rushed, they might demonstrate acting out behaviors to show they feel out of control. Parents want the best for their children but aren’t always aware of how their child’s perception of experiences affects their behavior or know how to help when tantrums or anger outbursts begin.
At Courageous Kids Counseling, we provide therapy for toddlers tailored to understanding your child’s expressions and supporting their emotional growth. With early intervention and the help of child behavioral therapists at Courageous Kids Counseling, you can gain awareness of what is happening and learn strategies to help your child manage emotions and demonstrate more constructive behavior.
Pediatric Behavioral Issues are Very Common in Youngsters.
While school-age children are more commonly treated for behavior problems, issues often arise during the preschool years and can go unnoticed and lead to more significant problems later on.
All children need to feel loved and supported. If they are experiencing chaos or trauma, feeling disruptions in their routine or feeling affected by their parent’s anxiety, they will feel less secure and calm. Trauma and neglect can also lead to feelings of insecurity and attachment difficulties in toddlers. The resulting behavior problems can include tantrums, fussiness, anger, aggression, separation anxiety or withdrawal.
Children also sometimes feel ignored or unsupported. Since they are unaware of this, they may act out their feelings through challenging behaviors. When toddlers don’t get the attention they seek, their acting-out behaviors may intensify.
You want to catch behavior problems early on before they become a pattern ingrained in their everyday responses to stressful situations. Fortunately, early intervention through behavioral therapy offers a way to help your child modify disruptive behavior and learn healthier ways of seeking attention from others. Pediatric behavioral therapy is an excellent strategy to help your child improve their behavior and feel better about their actions.
At Courageous Kids Counseling in New York, we provide behavioral therapy for toddlers to help young children cope with adversity. Our specialized behavioral therapy for toddlers addresses immediate concerns and builds a foundation fostering healthier emotional responses as they grow.
Benefits of a Behavioral Therapist for Your Toddler
There are several reasons why behavioral therapy for toddlers helps when they become emotionally dysregulated. Children enjoy getting attention from other children, adults, and parents. They love it when their parents listen to them, and they feel heard.
Our behavior therapists teach paraphrasing or repeating back what your child says to show you are listening. When you listen to your child, you also teach them to be a good listener. Over time, they can learn to listen better when you speak.
Children also behave better during active play. They burn off energy, have fun, and get to be in charge for a little while. This is especially true when a parent follows the child’s lead during play.
Additionally, children will more likely repeat behaviors that parents pay attention to. Instead of being reprimanded for negative behavior, you demonstrate attentiveness to their positive or good behavior.
It is easier for children to mistakenly think the only way they can get your attention is by acting out. Your child’s behavioral therapist will help you and your child to know there is a different and better way to behave.
At Courageous Kids Counseling in New York, we understand that toddler behavior issues for 2-, 3-, and 4-year-olds can be frustrating and overwhelming. We want to empower you and your child to learn how to cope with challenges and learn constructive ways to interact. Starting behavioral therapy for toddlers is not a reflection of your parenting skills.
Our toddler therapy focuses on addressing the challenges while celebrating your child’s milestones and achievements along the way. It is about providing specialized strategies to help your child grow and succeed.
We Provide Behavior Strategies Parents Can Use to Help Young Children at Home or School.
Behavioral therapy for toddlers requires the parent’s time and involvement but offers support to your child and family over the long term. As families learn new skills, they make permanent changes focused on their child’s strengths. Parents also learn in behavior therapy to use positive reinforcement, consistency, and praise to elicit healthier behaviors while less constructive behaviors fade away.
Our toddler therapy aims to create a nurturing environment to ensure your child feels safe and free to express and explore their feelings. Ultimately, as your child learns behavior management techniques, they will have more success with self-regulation and the parent, child and teacher interactions will improve. You should notice a shift away from what your child did wrong to assuming things will go well. There are so many long-term benefits of behavior therapy for all.
What We Do in Behavioral Therapy With Children.
The team at Courageous Kids Counseling has designed our toddler behavior therapy techniques to account for the ever-changing emotions of children between the ages of 2 and 4. As experts in behavioral therapy for toddlers, we are mindful of the balance between guiding young minds and giving them the freedom to express themselves. Our child therapists understand that behavior therapy is a commitment from you and your child. We provide a fun and positive experience to make change happen.
We will begin the therapy process with a consultation to discuss the behaviors hindering your child from living a happy and carefree life. During the first session, we will ask you to go into more detail about your child and their experiences. Though, in subsequent behavior therapy sessions, we may explore what is holding your preschooler back from behaving in a more helpful way, we will focus on positive behavior strategies that will help them to be more successful at home and school. We do this through a few different therapeutic methods.
One method we frequently use with young children is play therapy. Children love to play, so we already have a lot of buy-in from them. We use play therapy in a purposeful way to involve the parent and child in changing your child’s behavior. Through play therapy, you will learn to describe your child’s play to increase your toddler’s self-awareness and help them be more mindful of their behavior. Being more mindful of play helps your active or distractible child to focus and play with more positive intention.
Playing together strengthens your parent-child bond, making your child feel more relaxed and at ease. This helps your child feel safe in the knowledge you love them unconditionally. Feeling loved also increases a child’s emotional resilience, making coping easier during stressful periods. It reduces behavior issues and improves positive reactions to situations as well.
At times, we will also ask you to use positive behavior plans at home and share them with teachers, always focusing on highlighting your child’s successes. Our child behavior therapists do not encourage taking things away or punishing your kid, as this tends to escalate acting out behaviors. We want therapy to be a good experience for young children and one that will positively impact the parent-child relationship.
The Parent’s Role In Behavioral Treatment for Toddlers
By engaging in therapy, you are helping your child gain self-confidence and reduce challenging behaviors. As an added bonus, you will see a dramatic increase in your bond with your child, making it easier to empathize with their experiences. Playtime and positive interactions with your child can help you feel closer and make parenting more rewarding.
As a parent, you are strongly encouraged to be part of this process by providing background information and learning techniques that help your children. You can also help reinforce positive behaviors learned in sessions and help your child practice new behavior strategies between sessions so they are more successful. With your help, effective toddler behavior therapy can result in a significant positive change in your child’s demeanor and interactions.
When a child learns from you that specific actions are considered “good behavior” and are rewarded with positive attention, they tend to repeat these behaviors in the future. This encourages them to want to act that way for your approval, and it feels great for you and them. They can mentally remember that behavior as something that got a positive reaction from you and one they want to repeat. Our therapists focus on building a positive connection in therapy so you and your toddler can practice new skills regularly at home.
Behavioral Therapy Helps Many Types of Young Children
Many young children can benefit from behavioral therapy with Courageous Kids Counseling in New York. We work with children diagnosed with ADHD, anxiety, autism and speech, and language delays. Through the gentle guidance of our trained counselors, therapy for toddlers can unleash potential and develop resilience at a young age.
We also provide therapy for young children who may have been through an early intervention evaluation and did not qualify for services. Nonetheless, they may be demonstrating emotion dysregulation difficulties and need support. Furthermore, you may feel your toddler needs short-term support to catch up to peers or become more comfortable in different situations.
Regardless of the reason, our behavioral therapists are here to help your child learn the skills they need to feel happier and more successful. You may have felt like there was no chance for improvement in the past. Now, you can rest assured that change is entirely possible with the help of one of our licensed counselors. Early treatment of behavior issues in young children can have a positive effect to last a lifetime.
Behavioral Treatment for Toddlers FAQs
Is this just a phase my child will outgrow?
Yes, in a lot of ways, this is a phase. Your toddler or preschooler is only starting to learn about feelings and they don’t yet know how they impact their behavior. Behavior issues in young children are very treatable. The child who has tantrums today and cannot manage frustration when faced with a setback may smile and react with an easygoing attitude to the same situation in the future when provided strategies to help them better control their emotions. Fortunately, we have seen great success in helping toddlers manage stress by providing tools early on. This can lead to much better results in managing more significant problems later in life.
Does my child’s behavior issues make me a “bad parent?”
You may have read all the parenting books on managing disruptive behavior. However, it is very different when it is your child, and you are going through it. Behavior issues are prevalent in young children and highly treatable. As your child starts to feel more in control of their life and learns how to express their emotions, many negative behaviors that hold them back will melt away. In all the exhaustion and stress, you probably forgot what it is like to laugh, play, and have fun with your child. We will help you and your child get back to the time when you looked forward to being a parent. You will enjoy watching your child grow into the best version of themselves.
How will I know that my child is getting better?
Your child may be resistant to behavior therapy at first. After all, just like any problem, it takes work to make changes. However, with practice, you will start to notice your child acting out less and see them demonstrate positive behaviors more regularly. Our best advice is to be consistent and follow through with the changes you want to see in your child. Your youngster really does want to please you, and when you show them the behaviors you want them to exhibit, they will rise to the occasion to act in the way you desire. As we go along, we can always revisit and modify strategies for your child.
What upsets a 4-year-old?
When your child is in the ~4-year-old age range, they see the world from an extremely narrow perspective and have very basic criteria that determine their mood; do they feel good? Are they happy? If the answer is no to either of these questions, your four-year-old might get upset! Know that this is completely normal, and things like tantrums are very prominent at this age. If you have a child experiencing upset moods, you can read our guide on how to help your child’s tantrums go away.
Behavioral Therapy for Toddlers Helps Them Grow Into Their Best Selves
In our work together, we will uncover what is missing from your child’s life, what’s holding them back and the ways we can help them move toward a place of happiness and fulfillment. Contact Courageous Kids Counseling for more information about behavioral therapy for toddlers, or schedule an appointment with our professional therapists.
