19 month old tantrums

[Catmom213]

Hello all. My 19month old DD has discovered the act of tantrums in the past 2weeks! They seem to have come on really suddenly and today had a meltdown on the way home from creche which resulted in me carrying her as she arched her back and screamed the entire walk home! She is in general good form until something that she doesn't want to do happens. She doesn't want into her pram, carseat, walking harness and all of this is making the day to day really difficult.

When we got home today she took a good ten to 15 minutes to calm down from her hysteria and did not want me near her. After this she was pretty ok again until having to get dressed for bed and nappy changed. I feel like I'm tethering on not trying to set her off constantly.

Other that this she's a beautiful happy child usually. She's my first child and I love her to absolute bits but these past 2 weeks have probably been the toughest since becoming a mum. Can anyone tell me this is a normal phase at this age, or is it something I should be worried about?

Very normal, but very tough! There are some techniques that can help reduce the number, but some tantrums you just have to get through.

Lots of 'toddler's choice', so two choices both of which are acceptable to you, 'pink pyjamas or yellow one?', 'in the buggy or walking?', 'shoes on first or coat on first?'. If she won't chose, warn her that you'll choose for her, and do it.

Doing things in a silly or fun way can also help – we go up the stairs to get ready for bed in all sorts of ways, flying like an airplane, hopping like a bunny (with help), crawling and meowing like a cat, carried upside down.

If they are tired or hungry (or cold/hot/ill/etc.), that tends to make tantrums much more likely, so careful management can help. Perhaps a small snack on the way home from creche? We always have a snack directly after swimming for this reason, even if having tea as soon as we get home – otherwise the 'getting home' part is likely to go very badly.