Your child is in full meltdown with screaming, crying, or possibly aggression
Nothing except your calm presence. Water for after.
During a meltdown, the brain's alarm system has taken over completely. The thinking, reasoning brain is offline. This strategy works because it addresses the nervous system directly rather than trying to reason with a brain that can't reason. Getting low, reducing input, and breathing slowly all signal safety to an overwhelmed body.
Critical for all ages. The core approach stays the same from toddlers to teenagers — reduce input, stay calm, wait.
The most common feedback from parents is that doing less is harder than doing more. One dad said he spent months trying to talk his son through meltdowns. The first time he just sat on the floor, said nothing, and breathed, the meltdown was over in 10 minutes instead of 40.
