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Need A Handhold - Day From Hell

6 replies

Phoenixwings1989 · 25/10/2023 20:17

This morning started out like any typical day. DD who is 3.5 woke at 7, came into bed with me for a cuddle before going downstairs to see her dad and two and a half week old baby sister.

But it all went downhill after she'd had her bath before going to nursery.

She wouldn't listen, she kept singing at the top of her lungs (well it was more like shouting than singing), kept pawing at her baby sister every five minutes then refused point blank to brush her teeth. She eventually did but then refused to go to the toilet before leaving the house. Once she and DH left for nursery they'd made it so far down the road before they'd came back - DD had wet herself.

She didn't end up going because DH didn't think it was fair to take her with soiled clothes so thought it would have been nicer to keep her home. And he didn't have any change of clothes to put her in. But all afternoon we spent it trying to calm her down. We put on calming music, we tried colouring in with her and drawing but nothing worked. Each attempt just resulted in her shouting and screaming and jumping around everywhere. We used time outs too and that had no effect either.

We had to go to the shop and she seemed a bit more calm but on the way home she wet herself again and she was so distressed by it. She has never had an accident since she began potty training but recently she's been coming back from nursery in different trousers to which we send her in.

I have never been so scared as I am today. What kind of parents are we if we can't discipline her behaviour effectively? Is there even any point? I just want to throw the towel in and call it quits though I know I won't because I'm not the type to give up without a huge fight. I just feel so deflated I've done nothing but cry on and off all day.

Could there be a reason behind this behaviour? Is it down to regression? Her adjusting to changes or something more? I have Asperger's and possible ADHD and I'm terrified it's been passed on even though she's met all her milestones earlier than expected. I feel like I am going crazy.

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Paintandpots · 27/10/2023 02:04

New sibling, new baby in the house i suspect. Since having my youngest my toddler has changed behaviour wise which is understandable a he is no longer the only child/baby of our family.

Try to give her a much time as possible with you and your other half esp whilst baby is still in newborn stage.

skkyelark · 27/10/2023 09:06

Oh, OP, I can feel how your thoughts are spiralling and your fear for your daughter. I agree with @Paintandpots , though – her world turned upside down two and half weeks ago with the arrival of her baby sister. Even if she adores the wee one, her world has still changed immensely (think how much your world changed when she arrived). Keep her routine as much as you can so that that helps anchor her in her new world.

Challenging behaviour and toilet accidents are very, very common after the arrival of a sibling. Give her (and yourselves) as much grace as possible for the next few months. Obviously some things are non-negotiable (she needs to brush her teeth, no hitting/biting/etc.), but I'd ignore or work with as much of the low-level stuff as possible. She's wound up and wants to jump and shout? Go out in the garden to play, put on music for a dance party, let her run races in the hall, something like that. We got a small indoor trampoline before DD2 was born specifically to help DD1 burn off energy when I was heavily pregnant and in the newborn phase, and found it very, very much worth it, if you have space for something like that (ours folds, but I wouldn't want to be putting it up and down every day).

Bring spare clothes out with you, and perhaps a travel potty if you have one. We used to say that DD1 just had to sit on the toilet for a count of 10 when she was refusing a wee – somehow that was more acceptable being told to 'try for a wee', and very often once she was sitting, she went. A 'tactical wee' like Bingo can also work if she likes Bluey.

And again agreeing with PP, as much time and attention from you and DH as you can manage. If you've got good friends or relatives near by who can pay her some extra attention, maybe take her out for a wee treat, that can help too (depending on the child, some would just want mum or dad, and it would be more useful if granny can take baby for a walk for an hour).

Phoenixwings1989 · 27/10/2023 19:46

I know her world has been turned upside down recently but her behaviour has been like this since she turned 3 in March. Not to this extent granted but still. I am also finding it hard adjusting to having another little one again. I went to see my GP and I've been prescribed antidepressants. I don't feel like I'm bonding with baby no.2 which upsets me but I was up and down during pregnancy - mainly due to how my 3.5 year old would be and now those anxieties are real I just don't know what to do. We try our best to make her feel included and loved but it just seems to encourage her to misbehave further.

I've had to put her to bed tonight because she had a full on 25 minutes screamathon over wanting to draw in bed and my DH told her no and it was time for bed as it's not part of her routine to draw. She wasn't calming down for him so I thought it best to try to get her to calm down. His presence seemed to upset her more for some reason tonight. She was also up and down the stairs and refused point blank to go to bed which she's never done either. Again, yes probably just pushing the boundary but I don't know what to do. A mum should shouldn't she? I don't know. It just upsets me.

I'm more tolerable working with the low-level stuff but DH isn't. He can't let anything go. Since her 3rd birthday all he has done is complain about how unruly she is, how she doesn't listen and never tidies up after herself. I don't think I've ever heard a positive word leave his mouth about her since she was two years old. He is very headstrong as is our 3.5 year old and they have the same personality which doesn't help a great deal either. The constant negativity has/is draining me and I'm sick to the death of it. He's struggling with his mental health but won't go to the doctor's as he says 'hes a man' and 'men just get on with it 🙄.' Only his way of getting on with it is driving a wedge between them both I think and I'm close to running away and leaving everything behind but wouldn't because that's not me either.

But if I have to hear one more argument from them I don't know what I'll do

She's with her gran tomorrow and she usually stays over on a Saturday night as part of her routine. I don't want to stop that but will her behaviour get worse if we let her go? I want to be loving and gentle but how? How do I do so without encouraging even more bad behaviour?

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skkyelark · 28/10/2023 22:11

Ah, that's quite a lot of extra pieces to this.

Firstly, well done on going to your GP – hopefully the antidepressants will have you feeling better very soon. Are you getting a chance to regularly have a break from both children and do something for you? Read a book, have a bath, go for a walk, whatever it is that will recharge your energy and patience levels a bit? A newborn and a preschooler can mean a lot of noise and a lot of physical contact for mum. Are you managing okay with that, or are either or both (or some other practical or physical thing) using up a lot of your coping ability?

I've been there with a DH struggling with his mental health, struggling to cope with normal small child behaviour, and it really straining their relationship and the general atmosphere in the house. It's horrible, and very hard to know how to balance encouraging him to seek help and to continue to be an active parent with managing the effect on their relationship and protecting your child from unreasonable expectations. No easy solutions, but a handhold, and confirmation that you're finding it very, very hard because it is very, very hard.

There are some groups aimed specifically at men that he might find more accessible. Andy's Man Club, I'm sure there are others. Can you talk to your health visitor about it? They may know of local resources he could access. Beyond that, as decent sleep and healthy food as both of you can manage, fresh air, natural daylight, exercise, and some time to do something he enjoys (and the same for you!). It won't solve a serious mental health problem, but can help support and stabilise things.

With your three year old, no, mums absolutely don't always know what to do. We just have to give the impression that we have a plan and have it all under control. I've had a couple moments just today of standing there, mind spinning, trying to figure out how to juggle the competing needs of two small people or how to give a logical, linked consequence for misbehaviour, close enough in time to be meaningful for a four year old, and ultimately getting me the behaviour I need. Probably not even my husband realised how much I was winging it.

And you can be gentle and loving, and hold the boundary. My four year old fought bedtime yesterday – she'd played up getting ready for bed, and so lost the chance to go downstairs for a few minutes of TV before stories and songs. I sat on her bed, stroked her hair, told her that I understood that she was upset about not getting to go downstairs, but I kept her in bed. (I would have physically put her back in bed if necessary, and have when she was younger.)

Overall, I tend to say what I need them to do, say I'm going to count to three, then I'm going to choose for them/do it for them/carry them/whatever, and I stick to it. (Our standard bedtime antics one is that if you aren't getting undressed/cleaning your teeth/etc. by the time I count to three, you must be too tired to listen and need to go straight to bed, i.e., no TV treat. It usually, but not always, works.) However, you can often avoid needing to get to that point by giving choices (teeth or pyjamas first) or being silly about it (are you hopping/crawling/flying/etc up the stairs has prevented many a bedtime strop here). And then praise all the little things, you want her hearing much more positive than negative. Would your husband be open to trying that, catching the good moments, that she's put away her shoes, or worked really hard on building a tower, or whatever?

That's an essay, but I hope there's something in there that's helpful, if only sympathy and confirmation that you've got a lot to deal with – anyone would find it hard.

MargaretThursday · 30/10/2023 19:01

Most likely she's just upset with new baby.

But take her to the Gp and check her for a UTI.
Ds wet himself suddenly three times having not done so for over a year at a similar age. I took him to be checked and the Gp said sudden wetting should always be checked, and he had an infection. Cleared that up and no problem again.

Phoenixwings1989 · 09/11/2023 22:41

@skkyelark We do those things you mentioned above but it never sinks in. She just does it again and again then laughs about it. She's also a nighmare to calm down - won't sit still apart from when she's tired and even then it's very minimal. Nothing sinks in and I'm at my wit's end with worry. It makes me feel like I'm failing at parenting because something isn't sticking somewhere and it's my fault. Tonight she was caught drinking the dishwater (which she has never done before). I was just about to empty it. Of course DH and I both told her how important it was not to do that but again she just looked like we were talking in a foreign language. I don't think her understanding is where it should be for her age. She's also very fearless of dangers as above.

Things have been made even more difficult as DH was in an accident last week. He's had to have an operation and is home recovering but he's come out too soon and is struggling with our three year old. His mum's having to look after her until he is a 100%.

@MargaretThursday She hasn't had any more accidents but if she does I will take her to get checked out. It never crossed my mind so thank you for mentioning it.

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