Strong Willed children can make the best parents want to scream, pull their hair out (maybe that’s what happe
ned to me) and give up. Giving up it the exact opposite thing we should do. As we know every child is different and parenting strong willed children is a different animal from the passive or generally well behaved child. After a parent asked me a question about what I would do in the situation their were in, I didn’t quite know how to respond, I didn’t want to tell her what I really thought, so I decided to do some research and I found an article that is full of ideas and methods. While some of the ideas are not for everyone, maybe there is something in the article that will help you or someone you know.
The following article is by Dr Laura Markham at www.ahaparenting.com where you will find lot’s of great information on parenting. I highly recommend this site.
Have a strong-willed child? You’re lucky! Strong willed children can be a challenge to parent when they’re young, but if sensitively parented, they become terrific teens and young adults. Self-motivated and inner-directed, they go after what they want and are almost impervious to peer pressure. As long as parents resist the impulse to “break their will,” strong-willed kids often become leaders.
What exactly is a strong-willed, or spirited, child? Some parents call them “difficult” or “stubborn,” but we could also see strong-willed kids as people of integrity who aren’t easily swayed from their own viewpoints. Strong-willed kids want to learn things for themselves rather than accepting what others accept, so they test the limits over and over. They want desperately to be “in charge” of themselves, and will sometimes put their desire to “be right” above everything else. When their heart is set on something, their brains seem to have a hard time switching gears. Strong-willed kids have big, passionate feelings and live at full throttle.
Often, strong-willed kids are prone to power-struggles with their parents. However, it takes two to have a power struggle. You don’t have to attend every argument to which you’re invited! If you can take a deep breath when your buttons get pushed, and remind yourself that you can let your child save face and still get what you want, you can learn to sidestep those power struggles. In other words, don’t let your four year old make you act like a four year old yourself. You can’t control your child, but you can ALWAYS choose to control…….. Click here for the complete article.
