UNDERSTANDING, MANAGING AND SUPPORTING BIG EMOTIONS
ADHD Parent Support Series - Part 17
Big emotions can arrive quickly for a child with ADHD.
What looks like an enormous reaction to a small event may sit on top of frustration, sensory overload, tiredness, social pressure, repeated demands or the effort of holding everything together through the day.
This parent guide goes beyond telling a child to calm down.
It looks at what may happen before, during and after an emotional storm, why a child may be unable to use a familiar coping strategy when highly overwhelmed, and how parents can validate feelings while still keeping clear safety boundaries.
The resource explores early warning signs, co-regulation, sensory and environmental support, emotional language, repair after conflict and the importance of practising strategies when the child is already calm.
It also recognises the parent's nervous system. Supporting repeated intense emotions can be exhausting, and the adult may need their own plan for slowing the interaction down.
There is a practical Big Feelings Support Plan for families to identify triggers, early signs, helpful language, preferred support, recovery and repair.
The guide also considers why a child may appear regulated at school but unravel at home, and why emotional difficulties should not automatically be attributed to ADHD when anxiety, autism, trauma, bullying, sleep, sensory needs or other factors may also be involved.
The aim is not to remove big emotions.
It is to help the child feel understood, remain safer during difficult moments, recover with less shame and gradually build a clearer understanding of what their mind and body need.
Space to Breathe Therapy
ADHD Parent Support Series - Part 17
