The holiday season can be a great time to introduce new feelings to your child, but be careful as it can be overwhelming for your child to take in all the new sights, sounds and people. There are many ways to help your child cope with the excitement of the holiday season and also get accustomed to the abundance of newer food palates.
Start gradually easing your child into behavioral stimuli much before the holiday season begins. You can consult the therapist about showing your child how to communicate what he wants. Often, irritation or tantrums occur when the child does not know how to communicate what they want. However, be careful to teach them that they wont always get what they want gently but firmly.
Show them how to cope with disappointment positively and patiently. Teaching your child about meal time behaviour can be taxing but it is worth it. This way your family can dine together more often.
Visual representations of Christmas time and stories can help you child get a better perspective of what the season encapsulates. It can provide comfort for him to see pictures or videos of families dining together and may be more relaxed when they day does come.
For the Day
• Make sure your child dresses comfortably. It is not the best time to whip out a new costume with a material or colour your child isn’t already accustomed to. It can add pressure on an already foreign situation.
• Speak to your guests about maintaining pleasant decibels while conversing. Holidays and get –togethers can be loud affairs and that may be unpleasant or daunting to your child. Keep a set of noise reduction headphones in case you sense any discomfort in your child.
• Make sure there is a quiet room to retreat to where your child can relax with some of his favourite toys or books.
• Make sure you encourage him on all good behaviour and provide positive feedback. You know the best what sort of motivation your child responds to so a warm hug or a word of praise will ease him into certain environments.
• Keep strong aromas like scented candles at bay. Your food will already provide newer sensory overload for your child and it is safer to keep any additional sensory input at bay. I hope these tips are helpful in helping you and your family have a lovely time during the holidays!