Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes: Totally Normal Shenanigans At Every Age!

One of the first books many women buy when they find out they’re pregnant is What To Expect When You’re Expecting. After the baby arrives, so does the next volume in the series: What to Expect the First Year.

Somewhere around two years of age, families start reaching out to me (a parenting coach) for advice—the books aren’t quite enough anymore. They’ll tell me that their toddlers are constantly misbehaving. Their once totally adorable, dependent, and compliant little baby now refuses to eat certain foods, wakes up at night, acts impulsively, refuses to share, says ‘no’ all the time, and does the opposite of what is asked.

Here’s the thing: Just like learning to sit, crawl, and walk, the above behaviors are perfectly normal developmental milestones. The difference is that when babies take their first steps (a move toward independence), we smile and clap. When they don’t do what we ask (also a move towards independence), we may frown or yell.

I believe that it’s tremendously empowering for parents to know what behaviors are developmentally appropriate at each age, because it helps prepare them for the behavior changes that are coming. Knowing the sorts of things children might do, think, and say at different stages can help parents see many “misbehaviors” for what they are: a normal part of a young child’s physical, social, emotional, or cognitive development.

Developmental ages and stages continue with each passing year. It’s helpful to keep these in mind as your child enters elementary school and the pre-teen years, because our children will continue to exhibit behaviors that you may find—to put it bluntly—totally annoying. Here are a few of the common ones at each year in a child’s development.

Here are some tried and tested methods to keep the chills away:

• Layer up: Use several layers to dress up children and make sure their head, neck, and hands are covered. It is believed, kids should wear one extra layer than adults.
• Wash hands: Make it a habit to wash their hands as soon as they come back from playground, daycare or anywhere outside. Adults, handling kids should wash their hand too.
• Warm foods: Include warm foods such as sesame seeds, dry fruits and more. Increase intake of water and soups to keep them hydrated.
• Saline drops: Try saline nose drops to keep the nasal passage moist and let any mucus out.
• Citrus fruits: including citrus fruits can help fight infections. Make sure you offer fruits on a sunny day.
• Some ancient remedies such as increasing intake of garlic and ginger in winter, sitopladi churan, and chyawanprash during winters can help build immunity.