EMOTIONAL OUTBURST  IN CHILDREN WITH ADHD 

If you have a child with ADHD,  it’s very normal for them to experiences a strong emotional outbursts as well.

This is because kids with ADHD are more prone to be emotionally unstable and impulsive, which means they are more easily frustrated, impatient, excited, angry and annoyed than other kids who are at the same age, sex and physical and intellectual developmental level as them.  

In fact, around 60 to 70% of kids with ADHD have symptoms of emotional impulsivity. Parents often wonder why these emotional episodes happen to There children , and what can be done about them. 

Many child psychologist who are specializing in ADHD, think that it is an important distinction to make. If we seek to understand why they act in the weird way, it may be easier for us to help them prevent and manage their emotional outbursts. 

More than 60% of preadolescent children with ADHD experience an impulsive aggression, which is also known as affective aggression, and is characterized by strong, unplanned emotion outbreak , usually anger, and actions that often take place in the heat of moment.

Children with ADHD  experience different emotions with a greater intensity than their peers without it. ADHD, panic attacks and anger can be connected , and some kids with ADHD experience very frequent outbursts of anger. Although common, these intense emotions breaks can make it hard for a child to maintain friendships and behave in school and at home’s.

Understanding the causes of anger and frustration among kids with ADHD is very important  along with planning strategies for managing these intense emotions, can help prevent these short bursts of anger from causing long-term future damage as an adult. 

some common symptoms are 

Impulsivity

Impulsivity is a symptom of ADHD that is often concern with the inability to focus and control behaviour and actions of the person. The impulsive nature of ADHD children means that if your child feels angry, they cannot communicate it in the right away. 

Emotional Sensitivity

Kids with ADHD generally tend to be very emotional, more sensitive, and feel things very deeply. They also have a very hard time in regulating those feelings. This can cause them to cry very easily or feel intensely angry anywhere. 

 Mood Disorders

Moods change very quickly in the children throughout the day when you have ADHD. There can be many episodes of happiness, anger sadness, and frustration—all in one afternoon.

Frustration

Frustration is an emotion reaction that grows from challenges that stand in the way of goals. The ability to deal with these frustration is known as frustration tolerance. Low tolerance to frustration can mean that your child feels frustrated and gets irritated quickly, and this can quickly result in anger outbursts.

STEPS TO HELP KIDS WITH ADHD MANAGE THEIR EMOTIONAL OUTBURSTS

Understand Why Your Child Is Struggling 

At its base, ADHD is a disorder of lacking self-control and managing emotions is simply one part of that. Kids with ADHD have an underlying weakness in mental inhibition that negatively impacts executive functioning. The Executive functioning is our brain’s self-management system, which helps us plan things out , get our jobs done, and regulate our emotions.

CONSIDER THEIR DEVELOPMENTAL LEVEL

The executive functioning in kids with ADHD can vary from situation  to situation.  Therefore, when they’re having trouble in managing their emotions in the moment, parents should consider their developmental level, not their age, when responding towards them . 

Stay calm

 When your child is having an emotional meltdown, it may be hard for you to stay calm, especially if your child is acting loud  in a public place. But it won’t really help the situation if you’re both given up. Try to stay calm and talk quietly to your child; don’t shout. Seeing you acting normally may help your child calm down very easily. 

Be understanding

If you see that your child is getting upset or acting weird in public , ask them what’s wrong. Acknowledge what your  child is telling you and explain that you can understand their point of view. Children can find it reassuring that there parents can understands their concern. 

Try to Encourage them to talk about their own feelings 

Helping them to understand that  it’s not always okay to act on the feelings, it is always okay to talk about them.

Try Managing good emotional self-control in your  interactions with your child. Try to avoid yelling shouting and threatening them .

Praising your child’s efforts and help them to calm down, even when those efforts are not  successful.