Do you feel like no matter what you say to acknowledge your child’s feelings, it doesn’t help? You say sympathetically, "You're feeling angry right now" or “You wish you could watch another episode” and instead of calming down, they scream, cry harder, lash out or run away.

When all the positive parenting guidance is telling you to name feelings and hold space, it can be confusing when it backfires.

I really struggled to put my daughter to bed last night. Just when I thought she was drifting off, she ripped her nappy off, grabbed the monitor and threw it on the floor. I could feel my anxiety spike and was seconds from losing my temper.