There is a sense of active connection and presence that goes with being with them in their feelings. Looking into the eyes part is one way that our babies and children know that we are really present with them (although I'm sure that they can also sense it by the level of presence in our bodies too).
It's absolutely okay to cry in front of your children, and being authentic and vulnerable wth our children we can build stronger, healthier, and more meaningful relationships with them. But we must ensure we are accepting full and complete responsibility for our own emotional wellbeing.
They feel a kinship, a connection, a feeling of goodness that makes them want to talk to that person, or be around that person. It is a wonderful, heartwarming connection that is all about unconditional love, which is why children feel it so strongly.
Children with parents who punish them or tell them they are overreacting when they get upset are more likely to have problems regulating their emotions down the track. As with everything, it is our job to teach our children how to process their emotions in a healthy way.
This is a biological instinct that babies crave their mother's attention. When they see you, they expect you to immediately pay attention to them. Even if you're holding them and trying to comfort them, they may still cry.
Here's how it works: A baby who cries upon seeing her parent after a long separation is expressing his secure attachment to his parent.
Babies can become very clingy and anxious around new and even familiar people and may cry if suddenly approached by a stranger. While it may be cringe-inducing for you as a parent, it's actually a very normal part of your baby's development.
Leaving an infant to 'cry it out' from birth up to 18 months does not adversely affect their behaviour development or attachment, researchers from the University of Warwick have found, they also discovered that those left to cry cried less and for a shorter duration at 18 months of age.
They raise their arms for you to pick them up and hold them close. It seems entirely natural, but it's also a sweet sign that your toddler loves and trusts you. They seek comfort from you. Your toddler may hold out their hand so that you can kiss a boo-boo, or cry for you to cuddle them after a fall.
In the moment, I'd say something like, “I'm upset right now. It's not your fault and it's not your job to make it better. I WILL be okay.” Model taking a break, “I need to take a break and take some deep breaths to help my body calm down. I'll be okay in a few minutes.”
It's all right if your kids give you a hug when you're crying — it shows that they're empathetic.
It can actually be good for them. But the kind of argument you're having and how you communicate your thoughts and feelings makes a BIG difference. If arguments happen frequently or they are hostile, physical, aggressive, or include stonewalling, silent treatment, or insults, it can definitely be harmful to children.
It can make them behave badly or get physically sick. Children react to angry, stressed parents by not being able to concentrate, finding it hard to play with other children, becoming quiet and fearful or rude and aggressive, or developing sleeping problems.
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD): Being subjected to constant yelling and verbal abuse can cause symptoms of PTSD. Symptoms can include insomnia, feeling the need to be on guard, getting easily startled and displaying self-destructive behavior.
Ignoring is usually most effective for behaviors like whining, crying when nothing is physically wrong or hurting, and tantrums. These misbehaviors are often done for attention. If parents, friends, family, or other caregivers consistently ignore these behaviors, they will eventually stop.
A baby "should simply be allowed to 'cry it out'. This often requires an hour, and in extreme cases, two or three hours. A second struggle will seldom last more than 10 or 15 minutes and a third will rarely be necessary."
Your baby's intervals of crying should be no longer than 10 minutes. And with the bedtime fading technique, you put your baby to bed a little later each night, shifting bedtime back by 10 to 15 minutes, until your little one is tired enough to fall asleep on their own, even with a bit of crying.
While it can be difficult for parents, at least the cry it out method doesn't involve much guesswork: You'll let your baby cry it out for as long as it takes them to fall asleep. For some babies, that may be 5 or 10 minutes; for others, crying may continue on and off for several hours.
Hearing a baby cry activates a physiological response that cannot be controlled. MRIs taken of a mother's brain when she hears her baby's cries show that the brain lights up in response within a second. Those areas that light up are associated with empathy, compassion, and notably alarm.
Making a custody schedule for a toddler
Your custody schedule should give your toddler frequent contact with both parents and provide both parents opportunities to feed, bathe, play with, read to, arrange playdates for, and put the toddler to sleep. Toddlers can be away from either parent for 2 or 3 days.
Most of the time, toddlers whine because they want your attention. So the most effective way to prevent them from whining is to give them your undivided attention and keep them from getting bored.