Disproportionate crying reaction from 5 year old ds

[mamserafina]

ds has just turned 5 and in the last few months has regressed into a crying baby.

Every little thing makes him burst into tears, wherever we are.
i.e.

1. playing computer on his own, if he loses game he will cry
2. at the shops, if they don't have his favourite magazine he will burst loudly into tears and scream
3. at the restaurant if they don't have his favourite food ditto etc etc.

This is getting very embarrassing for me as his crying persists then until he sobs very loudly. I only about manage to persuade him to stop by bribing him/promising treat or trying to explain why it's not worth to get so upset about it.

If I raise my voice and tell him to stop he then starts crying even louder and says things like, please don't be angry with me and then tries to hug me and says sorry to me for upsetting me.

This of course upsets me even more and makes me feel heart less.

He's otherwise a very happy child, doing well at school and with lots of friends.

Do you think this is normal behaviour for his age and if you have experienced the same which trick worked?

thanks in advance for reading this....I would really appreciate some advise or even shared experience of the same and to learn what I am doing wrong if it's my fault for his behaviour (i.e. should I be more relaxed about his crying?)

Pointless asking him to stop showing his emotions because his younger brother is busy showing his. Of course he will get louder. You may be thinking "God I cann't take this level of noise any more, ds1 is old enough to control himself a little by now, surely?"

But he is probably thinking "I want her to give me the same snuggly sympathy that the baby gets. Maybe if I'm louder than him she will pay me a bit more attention. Why does she tell me to stop and not him? Aren't I allowed to be upset? I'll keep going and see what happens"

nnb - my question was just a general question around how you see your 4/5 yrs old. Not aimed at you in particular. i.e. Do you suddenly expect your dc to behave like a mini adult at this age?

I find it's a strange age as they are still little (and ds1 IS still my little baby!) but at school they expect them to follow rules, be independent and mainly behave like little adults.

I agree with you colditz, his perception of the situtation is totally different than mine.
But people kept telling me that with a 5 years gap between the two of them it would have been easier as ds1 would be far more understanding than if he was let's say 2 yrs old...