Friday, September 13, 2013

My child's first tantrum

Wyatt's first birthday is just a few days away, so today we went shopping for birthday gifts and party decor. A few months ago, I saw these cute John Deere toys at Tractor Supply that I knew Wyatt would love. So we went into Tractor Supply to buy the gift. Isaac had to run to the bathroom, so I pushed Wyatt in his stroller over to the toys. I picked up the toy and noticed a little section in the store that had a bunch of toys that were bargain toys. They sold some tall tubes filled with different groupings of animals like farm, safari, horses, etc. I grabbed the tube and gave it to Wyatt to see if he thought it was cool. Wyatt loved it! So once I saw he liked it, I took it away and the crying began. He was so loud and I didn't want to bother the other customers, so I gave the toy back. Isaac came and found us and took the toy from Wyatt and he started to throw the fit again. Isaac said, "Let him throw the tantrum." I felt so dumb. I felt dumb because I am a therapist, right? I am constantly telling parents that they shouldn't give into their children, and what did I do? I allowed Wyatt's screaming to stress me out and I just gave in. I didn't think even think. It happened so fast. I was so worried about Wyatt's tantrum bothering other people, I put Wyatt last. I didn't think about the lesson Wyatt needed to learn. After Isaac had taken away the toy, Wyatt threw his little tantrum but calmed down relatively quickly. I'm grateful for my husband and that he was there so that we did the right thing for Wyatt. I'm also glad that I'll get another chance to properly react to the situation. I know that just because I am therapist doesn't mean that I will be the perfect wife or the perfect parent. It helps to have studied about relationships but just like everyone else, I still have to learn how to apply my knowledge to real life situations.    

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