Whining kids and selective hearing
luv_2_craft
> Yes, I am trying to validate all of his complaints, after about 6hrs, of it I tend to get a bit snippy with him.
I am a proud mommy of a hyperactive 4 year old who has a tendancy to
go on a verbal whiney rampage at least daily regarding something I
usually cannot change to his satisfaction.
I have learned to give myself a mental vacation during these times. I
have learned to block out the unimportant complaining. Then when a
legitimate complaint comes forth like "I'm hungry" I am all ears
again.
It takes practice, but if you could live thru the discomfort of
bearing this child into the world, you can train yourself to have
selective hearing. Men have this inherantly. The last time I told my
husband to pick up his socks, he used this selective hearing and the
socks remained there. If I were to tell him someone was choking on a
lego, then he'd be there so quick! Thus the glories of selective
hearing.
It doesn't work all the time. The husband still can't use his to
block out the loudness of the kids at play when he's trying to
concentrate on something. I usually choose not to take that time to
do anything and let the kids have their fun. But still...
The whining is not playtime noise. It is meant to get mom's
attention. It is like a siren. A bell. A signal that something is
not right.
Babies cry, little kids whine, older kids complain and adults vent.
Ah, the glories of communication. We are human and we are never
fully satisfied with things. That's why we are capable of adaptation
and changing.
Little kids don't have the aptitude yet to understand the world
around them fully; what they can change and what they cannot and how
to adapt to any of it. So they whine.
Moms are a bit different. We can understand the difference between
these things and we are pros at adaptation. We also understand when
a child is just whiney or when it is a serious need requiring our
attentiveness.
You CAN selectively tune out the whining. You can also note to your
child that you are going to ignore until the complaining stops and
explain that you cannot change what cannot be changed (kids believe
moms are superhuman sometimes).
I would also look into diet, general stresses, television
programming, sleep disturbances, and playtime situations to see if
there isn't an underlying stress that is causing your child to be
overly sensitive. This goes back to the part where mommies can change
some things. :)
Good luck. And remember that raising a child is like growing a
flower garden. The more effort you put into it, the more beautiful
and wonderful it will be.
(forgive this if it second posts.... had trouble posting the 1st time
it didn't show up)