Picture this; you’re playing a board game, everything’s going fine when all of a sudden your child pulls the wrong card or their sibling does well in the game and the tides turn. Your once happy, family fun night has now become loud, angry, and out of control. You hear; “This game is cheap, I hate this game!” and then sometimes things go even further; the board gets flipped and they stomp away really mad and upset. Losing is a pretty intense feeling and for some kids their feelings are bigger than they can maintain and hold into their little bodies.
As a parent watching this, we sort of see their life flash before our eyes, and think; “who’s going to want to play with him or her, they are such a terrible sport?
But before we write their life journey off as impossible one of the things to keep in mind here is these moments are usually a far more intense display at home where a child is comfortable to let loose and there are a few things that you can do to help them learn how to manage their feelings.
This week I want to talk about your kids being a sore loser and what can be done in those high intense moments where everything feels so out of control.
Meet Jennifer Kolari
Jennifer Kolari is the host of the “Connected Parenting” weekly podcast and the co-host of “The Mental Health Comedy” podcast. Kolari is a frequent guest on Nationwide morning shows and podcasts in th US and Canada. Her advice can also be found in many Canadian and US magazines such as; Today’s Parent, Parents Magazine and Canadian Family.
Kolari’s powerful parenting model is based on the neurobiology of love, teaching parents how to use compassion and empathy as powerful medicine to transform challenging behavior and build children’s emotional resilience and emotional shock absorbers.
Jennifer’s wisdom, quick wit and down to earth style help parents navigate modern-day parenting problems, offering real-life examples as well as practical and effective tools and strategies.
Her highly entertaining, inspiring workshops are shared with warmth and humour, making her a crowd-pleasing speaker with schools, medical professionals, corporations and agencies throughout North America, Europe and Asia.
One of the nation’s leading parenting experts, Jennifer Kolari, is a highly sought- after international speaker and the founder of Connected Parenting. A child and family therapist with a busy practice based in San Diego and Toronto, Kolari is also the author of Connected Parenting: How to Raise A Great Kid (Penguin Group USA and Penguin Canada, 2009) and You’re Ruining My Life! (But Not Really): Surviving the Teenage Years with Connected Parenting (Penguin Canada, 2011).