Emotional Damage!

Family game time is an inexpensive and valuable way to spend quality time. For us, family game time used to be a very challenging experience because our very determined Mikey couldn't handle losing! Most people don't like losing but Mikey's tantrums were off the charts (as you'll hear today)! We realized that we were going to have to teach Mikey the  skill of losing without having an emotional breakdown, and this episode is all about what that  journey has looked like for us. Everything changed when Mikey began seeing an Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapist, and although there are still certain situations he struggles with, we can now enjoy family game time relatively stress free!  Key Points From This Episode:  Things Mikey struggled with when he was in preschool. How Mikey used to react to situations when he was losing. The emotional revaluation tool that helped 5-year-old Mikey better understand his feelings. Examples of times when Mikey has publicly exploded because he was losing a game. Explaining the concept of “failing forward fast.”  What Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy is.  Clinic versus at-home ABA therapy, and why the latter worked better for us. Some of the useful strategies that we learned from Mikey’s ABA therapist. How Mikey has progressed over the years in terms of how he handles losing. Encouragement to all parents out there who are going through a similar experience to ours.  Tweetables:  “Kids need to learn how to lose and how to win.” — Heather [0:01:26]  “(Mikey) is incredibly driven, and we didn’t want to take the drive out of him, we just wanted to  take out his response if things weren’t looking good.” — Mike [0:10:41]  “Our kids need frequency to practice the skills so that it really sticks with them.” — Heather  [0:23:32]  “The mentality that I bring to our family is to fail forward fast.” — Mike [0:24:11]