Overtired & Gremlin takes over

... merely sympathy!
And tea!
☕️

Make sure she is not hungry or thirsty, suggest a quiet activity every so often.

If all else fails, smile sweetly, do not engage and pour yourself a stiff drink 🥃

My little grandson became a gremlin when he was hungry. When I had given him some food the angel would be back.
Food and nap is usually the answer.
It does pass as they get older.

Food is critical. The first time we had DGD to stay on her own, we went swimming. It was a lovely outdoor pool and we were there quite a time, but she did not want to come out of the pool as lunch time approached.

She then threw a real trembler. saying she wanted to go home to her mummy and daddy. DH who is a very peaceful man, got in a state as well. So I stood back and let her throw herself about. Not saying anything, just watching - and stopping DH interfering. Then when she had calmed down a bit, we went to have lunch in a nearby cafe and once she had food in front of her then in her, a miracle occurred and this lovely sunny 5 year old emerged from a chrysalis of tantrum.

Food is critical.

One of my DSs always had a sugar dip mid afternoon from about 3 years of age. It took a while to realise this and some quite embarrassing moments when out or visiting friends. At those times he did ask for sweets, biscuits, sweet drinks, but being parents who encouraged healthy eating he didn’t get them. When we became aware of the problem we would top him up with a snack before he became difficult!
He now hates raisins, a reminder of his topping up snack.

AGAA4

My little grandson became a gremlin when he was hungry. When I had given him some food the angel would be back.
Food and nap is usually the answer.
It does pass as they get older.

I have a daughter (40 now) who is still really touchy and spikey when hungry.
I had forgotten how quickly she deteriorated as a child if she was hungry. Interestingly she ate a lot when growing but now eats quite modest sized meals.
She has always been slim and active - was no trouble if tired, just if she was hungry.
I suppose we never truly know what a growing little person feels inside!

Thank you very much everyone. Really appreciate your comments. Obviously food is the answer!
So very delighted to realise it’s not just me or mine!

Indeed, my GS is always a nightmare if he is overtired or - more usually - hungry.

RosieBL

Thank you very much everyone. Really appreciate your comments. Obviously food is the answer!
So very delighted to realise it’s not just me or mine!

It's not just you.

Five is quite young. They get tired and hungry (hangry) easily. We tend towards protein snacks, I find that helps children regulate them selves.

themselves

Healthy snacks are a regular part of meal planning for young children nowadays.

Not like the slice of bread and butter which was the only thing my Mum would grudgingly offer between meals.
And if you turned your nose up at that, she'd declare you weren't really hungry then 🤣

Tbf I think even adults can play up if tired or hungry let alone a 5 year old.

My 50 something son is impossible when hungry but it has taken years for him to recognise that he has never been any different.

We have 2 grandchildren of 2 and 8 in the Netherlands boy and girl and a granddaughter aged 7 in Melbourne Australia. We do actually see all of them pretty often for which we are very grateful.
Tantrums occur quite often for no specific reason. We both say that we’re sure we never had a problem with our children (their parents boy and girl) and we sailed through their childhood
Maybe our memory’s not what it used to be.😉

To be fair, the time out probably isn’t helping matters. Try time-in.

I tried meditation with my grandsons. Laid out on the ground and being conscious of their breath. Talking them through it.

So much calmer afterwards. Like magic for us all.

(Having discounted tiredness and hunger of course)

My daughter also! Once , when going on a field trip away for a few nights at uni we advised her companions that if she became tetchy and irritable, give her food!
When giving them a lift from the the station after the trip they admitted they thought we were joking, but it did work!

Now her son is the same. Before he started school we looked after him one day a week. Like others it took us a while to figure it out, but he had a sugar dip mid afternoon. We solved this by giving him a proper cooked meal at lunchtime.

Junior, now 36, was irritable if the in laws and nursery teachers forced food down him. I explained gently that he wasn’t a big eater. He just likes chicken nuggets or fish goujons and his Macdonalds treat on Saturday, just a Happy Meal, not a supersized burger. Relatives were horrified and stuffed dry bread down him until he said no more, no more. Now husband and I use no more, no more as a family joke. I had to step in as his mum and agree no more, no more. I knew what food he loved in small doses and knew when he became a teenager he would eat us out of house and home. He is a trained nutritionist but doesn’t work in that field and he eats like a tiger. Only a mum knows what her child is happy with. Or guardian if mum is missing of course. He’s abroad right now with his lovely fiance but will probably be home next weekend on his own. I’m planning on a slow cooker leg of lamb with rosemary and wine. He’ll probably eat half of it. I never panicked. Young children are pernickity where food is concerned but I am no expert becoming a surprise mum at 37 back in the eighties. During his working journey he worked as a chef, a gym manager and is slim as can be but eats an awful lot. He now works in Tv and media. My message? No need to panic about young children. They will find their own way.

Nothing to do with food, one of my children was more difficult and caused more rows than the other.

My DGS is a fussy and small eater. At 14, he is 6ft 3inches with a 25 inch waist. He did have a brief spell of eating lots, when he grew very fast, but he is like his maternal grandfather. Tall, very thin and a fussy eater. Yes, he had tantrums and irritability until he was 8 or 9, but the cause was not low blood sugar.

Offering food every time a child is cantankerous could be a cause of obesity later, with the child comfort eating as all bad feelings were dealt with by giving them something to eat.

Hm. I agree with ensuring food is given at regular intervals.
Or at least drinks. From when they are tiny and in nappies, the main things are clean nappies hunger and in need of a nap.
Anything else can generally dealt with by sufficient attention but also not too much as they can be over shepherded as they grow and need to learn.

Food was definitely the problem with my grandson. As we approached mealtimes he would become irritable and play up. As soon as the meal was over he was fine again. He's still a bit like that now aged 22. He is 6ft 2 inches and very slim.
I believe for some children the gremlin appears because of hunger.

My GS was recently sick in the night the day before GD's birthday party which had to be postponed. Thankfully he recovered quite quickly, but had a few tantrums afterwards. My DiL cals it PVB - post viral behaviour!
My own children were pretty good and rarely had tantrums, but when visiting my mum once, DD threw a huge tantrum on our last day. When she had calmed down my mum simply said "Thank goodness for that! I was beginning to wonder if that child was normal!" I was just relieved it was a fairly rare occurance.
They all do it from time to time. It helps if you identiry the trigger but some just can't be avoided.

M0nica

Nothing to do with food, one of my children was more difficult and caused more rows than the other.

My DGS is a fussy and small eater. At 14, he is 6ft 3inches with a 25 inch waist. He did have a brief spell of eating lots, when he grew very fast, but he is like his maternal grandfather. Tall, very thin and a fussy eater. Yes, he had tantrums and irritability until he was 8 or 9, but the cause was not low blood sugar.

Offering food every time a child is cantankerous could be a cause of obesity later, with the child comfort eating as all bad feelings were dealt with by giving them something to eat.

At least two of my grandchildren with different mothers have been and still are Jekyl and Hyde. One minute they are fine and the next all hell breaks loose. No rhyme or reason to it. They just get very cross very quickly. Just a note they have both had this tendency since childhood! They both are little angels at school!

The best way to deal with this in our opinion is just not to engage. They seem to get over it quicker if left alone but it’s very difficult.

I think, M0nica some of us (well me anyway) were not suggesting snacks for bad behaviour but suggesting sensible eating was sometimes required more often.
My daughter needed to have (say) a boiled egg or piece of fruit when we sensed she was getting tetchy.
It was never cake and biscuits.
When the next meal came along she would invariably eat it just the same.
She was slim and always has been, like her brothers.

Her sisters were rounder but none of the others got into a state when hungry.

I just think Hungry/Thirsty/Tired are my 3 go to things with little ones having a bit of a "turn". .