Why Won’t They Listen?
Why won’t they listen?
Communicating with your toddler to gain cooperation
Do your children ignore you, only listen when you shout or have their 'selective hearing' turned on?
It can push buttons and you end up losing your rag, especially when you've got to be somewhere or your patience has worn thin because you're just sick of repeating yourself again and again!
Or it gives you a heartstopping moment when they’re straying too close to a busy road and your yelp of “don’t go near the road” falls on deaf ears.
You’re not alone. Parents of young children everywhere lament the lack of listening.
I know it feels like it but your child isn't willfully ignoring you (I promise!) They just have different priorities, a slower pace of life and an immature brain that makes listening a little tricky sometimes.
So what can we do to support them?
It helps to understand the world from their perspective, to step into their shoes (yep the shoes you’ve asked them to go get half a dozen times)!
The Secret To Being A Calmer More Connected Parent During A Pandemic And Beyond – Free ebook Inside!
We’ve all been operating from our threat systems for a year now, running on adrenaline and cortisol, and it’s leaving its toll. Our threat system evolved to keep us safe in times of danger, but these times of danger were short term threats like escaping an animal attack, not year long pandemics.
What does this do to our bodies and minds?
How this manifests and impacts our bodies and minds is different for everyone, but its effects are there and impacting our capacity to parent in the way we want to.
You may be finding yourself losing your patience at you child, or turning into that shouty parent you never wanted to be. You might be feeling guilty or worrying about the impact of this on your relationship with your child.