Engaging the Emotional Child

Interacting with an emotional child or teen can feel both exhausting and disheartening. Adults often resort to responses that offer quick fixes or by letting their own emotions take over. Often, the goal focuses on controlling the child’s external behavior and responses without engaging what is behind the emotion. But your relationship with the child needs to be a safe place for them to struggle and grow and see themselves more clearly. This session will therefore discuss: 1) how to thoughtfully understand highly emotional youth, and 2) practical ways to engage and help a child or teen grow in self-awareness.