8 Effective Ways for Parenting Without Yelling
- by WONDERMOM
- June 29, 2022
You’ve just put away all that clay dough for the third time and you tell your child no more dough before bedtime. A little later, you find she’s taken out all the stuff again and is happily molding a bug! It’s natural for your blood to boil.
But before raising your voice remember that all that yelling and screaming doesn’t curb frustrating behavior in your child. On the flip side it’ll only make everybody including you upset and guilty. Here’s a list of 8 ways you can rely upon for getting your kids to listen without yelling.
1. Baby Proofing
Ensure basic baby proofing the house. Keep child inappropriate things out of reach of the little ones. This is especially beneficial when your child reaches out, gets that box of cereals and dumps the entire content on the floor! It’s best to keep such things out of reach.
2. Get Out of the Situation
If your spouse is around, take his help to deal with your unruly child. Chances are he won’t yell (as he is not yet as mad as you are!) and even your child might mellow down with the change in parent.
3. Realistic Expectations
If you find yourself constantly yelling at your children, chances are your expectation levels from them are too high. You shouldn’t forget that you are dealing with a child who’s physically and mentally not as developed as you. Hence it might be difficult for him to spend hours doing what you enjoy or in turn enjoy doing something for hours which you disapprove of.
4. Be Assertive- Not Mean
Be calm and address your child firmly. A soft yet firm tone will make your child strain and actually listen to you.
5. Strategize
Try to time out your stressful activities without your children tagging after you. If you lose it regularly at the grocery store then you can either shop online after your kids’ sleep time, or visit your favourite store at night or weekdays to avoid crowds and get your shopping and billing done fast.
6. Cook Up a Fictional Story
This is an effective way on how to discipline your child without yelling. Try stories like this: what happened to the little girl when she did (or didn’t) listen to her mother? The result can be glorious or bad depending upon the imaginary child’s actions. This is a win-win situation for both mother and child when the former is busy telling the story and the little one is imagining.
7. Let her Know You Are Angry
Instead of just snapping let her know that you are getting mad. If she doesn’t care, give her a time limit and a harmless threat. For instance, her toys might go to the trash can if she doesn’t pick them up once you finish counting 10. This works very well for small children and helps your kids to listen without yelling.
8. Keep Squeezy Toys Handy
Squeezable stress toys such as smiley balls and dolls can work wonders in squeezing the stress out of you. So keep them handy and squeeze that ball whenever you have the urge to blow your top.