Your child is spiralling again.

Everything you say seems to make things worse.

Instruction after instruction is ignored and the situation is slipping out of control. Your heartrate is rising and you know that you can't continue to ignore your other responsibilities indefinitely. You glance over at their siblings or their classmates as you worry about their response too.

Anyone trapped in a moment of anxiety can find it almost impossible to access their pre-frontal cortex and tune in to the human voice. Anxiety often plays a part in a child's distressing behaviour. I've stood in your shoes as the adult in the room desperate to reach a child spiralling out of control or seemingly frozen. Without a series of strategies for this situation it's also incredibly difficult for you to remain calm too.

This week's simple suggestion is to consider visuals. When they cannot hear you sharing information and instructions visually can make a massive difference.

Considering visuals means making sure you have the tools in place. Perhaps it will look like having a small whiteboard within reach on which you can explain what is happening. You don’t have to be Picasso (as my drawings below show!) but visuals are central to our approach at Eden because their an accessible strategy with an immediate impact.

The blog post above was included in our growing weekly email “Eden Equips”. We’re really grateful to all who’ve shared your contact details with us and we’ll do our utmost to add genuine value to your inbox each week.

Every email will contain a simple suggestion to help you.

Your dedication to seeing every child flourish inspires our work.