Anger Management for Children and Teens
Is your child or teen in need of anger counseling? Our child psychologists and child therapists in Cary, NC work with kids and teens to identify the sources of their anger, teach them anger management skills, and learn to express their emotions in a healthy way.
A lot is going on in a developing child. Not only are their bodies changing before your eyes, their minds are expanding and changing all the time. Kids learn to experience emotions far before they learn to handle them appropriately. Anger is a big emotion, and when a child is acting out in anger, it affects the whole family.
There are several developmental "tasks" that young people must complete before they can handle anger in a healthy way. They must:
1. Be able to recognize that they are feeling angry.
2. Identify the source of their anger.
3. Be able to talk about their angry feelings.
4. Learn and deploy strategies for managing their anger.
A child psychologist or child therapist can help this process along and arm your child or teen with the tools they need to deal with anger and frustration. There are different kinds of anger, and anger is sometimes accompanied by underlying feelings, such as hurt, guilt, or embarrassment. Understanding your feelings is an important part of getting them under control. Through anger management counseling, children and teens get the skills they need to feel good about themselves and handle anger calmly.
Some of the skills your child or teen might learn in anger therapy include:
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What they will personally get out of making some changes in their thinking and behavior. Helping a child or teen see the benefits of learning to manage anger can help them be more willing to change.
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Vocabulary to express their feelings and assign words and descriptions to confusing and painful emotions.
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How to resolve conflicts with others using assertiveness skills without using hurtful language or destructive behaviors.
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How to avoid blaming and take responsibility for their feelings and actions.
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How to listen and see things from the other person's perspective.
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How to calm themselves down when anger gets too big to handle.
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How to prevent themselves from becoming overly angry in the first place.
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How to think more positively and feel good about themselves.
If your child's or teen's anger is making them miserable or affecting the whole family, schedule an appointment with one of our therapists.