What If She Acts Like This at 16?

Conscientious parents can get themselves quite worried when they think like the title here. On the other hand, it is pretty normal to do so. Say your first grader gets very frustrated with her friend when they are planning a pretend scene, and she stomps out of the room, saying mean things and throwing a book. You notice that this has been happening a lot lately. She has a short fuse, gets easily frustrated, and her behavior suffers. If you confront her, and tell her to apologize to her friend, you might have a bigger fight on your hands. You’re even walking on eggshells around her. It is true that you don’t want a teenager who behaves in this way. However, thinking in this way usually makes parents feel more anxious and desperate. They want to eradicate the behavior Now. Here are my thoughts about this situation. First, I often tell parents that child development is on their side. By that I mean that as children grow, their brains grow also. The parts of their brains that help them have better judgment and better impulse control grow. As your child gets older, she will be better able to manage frustrations without physical outbursts. Second, you don’t know that she’ll behave this way when she’s 16, or even 8. Why get all worked up by predicting the future? No one I know can predict the future. Cognitive behavioral therapists call predicting a negative outcome a “cognitive error” that leads to greater anxiety and even depression. It won’t help you cope with what you are dealing with today, that is, her tendency to be explosive when she’s frustrated. Third, if you predict a negative outcome in your own mind, you might communicate that to your child, either implicitly or directly. Unfortunately, a child who believes that her parents fear (or believe) that she’ll come to no good is likely to meet their expectations. So, what can you do? Notice when you are predicting a bad future and pull yourself back to the unpleasant present. Your first grader is behaving badly, and you need to help her with it. You do not know what will happen in the years to come. Take a deep breath and try to have some faith that you will figure out how to help her with her frustration. She is young, and she needs to develop better coping strategies. At this point, some parents might say, “But I’m doing the best I can,” and that’s the truth. So, look for help. Talk to other parents whom you admire. Get suggestions for reading from your pediatrician. Or talk to a child psychologist. There are a variety of issues that could be leading to the behavior I described above. You can get some help and learn some strategies yourself. There is no shame in asking for help.