My sister and her 2 1/2-year-old daughter came to visit me and my family. During their first full day here, my sister told me that her relationship to her daughter was growing very strained and difficult. She was very frustrated. I told her about this way of working with angry or frustrated children and she was like a sponge!
That day her daughter had a big tantrum. She cried and raged and fought. My sister was in tears too. She read all the booklets and had several more opportunities to listen and support her daughter through some challenging feelings.
By the time they left 2 weeks later, my sister said she felt like a new person and that she had gotten her delightful little girl back, the way she always had been. My sister was so grateful. She had thought if her little girl was angry, that she was being ungrateful or inconsiderate or something like that. After a few days I heard my sister saying ‘It's okay to be angry. Let's sit down until you feel better inside.'
The change was dramatic. She feels comfortable with feelings being expressed and she and her little girl talk about feelings a lot. So thank you, thank you for sharing with us!
– A Parenting by Connection Mom