19 Parents Shared the Unusual Methods That Helped Them Keep Their Mini-Humans Under Control

If there is one thing we can all agree on, it’s that raising children is not an easy task for anyone. In order to do a good job, many parents resort to novel strategies, different from those used in traditional education. Although not all of them always work, there are some methods that turn out to have such positive effects, they exceed expectations. And they deserve to be shared with others who are struggling to raise their mini-human beings.

Bright Side compiled several “confessions” from parents who used peculiar techniques with their children, and it worked like a charm.

• Oh, hormones are so much fun!! It gets better. The swings aren’t as drastic in a few years. But be firm with them. If they have a bad attitude and are screaming, throwing things, slamming doors, etc... take away what they value most. Phone, electronics, screentime. We recorded our daughter and showed her how she acted when she was like that because she seriously didn’t seem to remember. It helped to calm her. And seeing her younger cousin get all rage-filled for no reason. It still happens at times (she’s 15) but it’s less often now. Having all those hormones and not knowing how to express yourself is difficult for them. © Rose_David163 / Reddit
• When my daughter was a newborn, she absolutely loved the hair dryer. Our midwife said we should blow-dry her after taking a bath because, for a lot of babies, that’s more comfortable than using a towel. She was so happy when we did it. So when she was crying, I used to lay her down on the changing table and use the hair dryer on her (of course, on a not too hot setting with enough distance). Often, she would fall asleep this way. One day, she just started to hate everything that made noise and now she starts to cry at the sound of the hair dryer, the vacuum, the kitchen machines... We don’t know what happened since we didn’t notice any negative experiences. But until then, it worked like a charm. © WaspDefender / Reddit
• Sometimes putting the baby in a carrier and walking around the house worked for me. I developed a special walk that was slightly bouncy that, I think, mimicked being in the womb (I called it my zombie shuffle since I was so tired). The baby would fall asleep and then I could ease the baby into bed. © CanaryVogel / Reddit
• I got this star light projector thing that projects different color stars on the ceiling and walls (with the room lights off) and has a button to make them move around slowly. My son’s totally content to chill in his crib, pointing and talking excitedly about what he sees. We’re in separate rooms but as soon as I hear him, I turn it on, then go brush my teeth, go to the bathroom, start the coffee, etc. Not sure how long he will be excited about this but he has been very very excited for about a week, it’s super cute. © rainbow_orca / Reddit

• I have toys on the floor for my toddler to play with, I just close my bedroom door so he’s contained while I get myself and my room ready for the day, he usually just walks around the room or stands in front of the mirror, but if he’s really fussy that day, I skip making the bed and just get myself ready. I have little baskets of toys in every room in our apartment to keep him occupied no matter what I’m doing, so yes, he has his main toys, and then these toys are almost like “special” toys since he only plays with them when I’m in the bathroom or cleaning. © projectxplode / Reddit
• 7 years of infant care in daycares before having my own, the best advice I have is even if you have to force it through blurry eyes and sleep deprivation, act excited to see the teachers. If they’re open to it, you can ask them to act excited back. Children trust who you trust and are happy when you are, so if you’re over the top about how GREAT their teachers are, drop-off is just SO fun, their little brains will make that connection fast. © Bea_Stings / Reddit
• Our child therapist (licensed, trauma-focused) that works with our 10 y.o. had a recommendation for how we deal with our 2 y.o. that has worked really well: Acknowledge feelings, identify the poor behavior, redirect it to preferred behavior, then give them space to have their feelings if it’s safe to do so. The goal is to help them identify their feelings and give them coping skills that are age-appropriate. My 2 y.o. doesn’t know how to take deep breaths yet, so we let her cry or do angry walks or snuggle toys, etc. © LadyStarbuck1 / Reddit
• My crazy (and broke) parents raised 8 very successful kids. Some unorthodox things that worked for them: our punishment for anything, including bad grades, a bad attitude, or skipping chores, was not being allowed to go to school. This made us really appreciate school. We would have to do chores most of the day at home. © cupateatoo / Reddit

• My daughter had a brief hitting problem. I would physically stop her (gently) and say it’s okay to be angry, it’s not okay to hit. If it was because of a toy, the toy was taken away until later. She also got hugs and love during this time. Later, in a calm moment, we would talk about it and I would tell her things she CAN do when mad instead. The habit was gone pretty quick. Time outs don’t actually teach the kid anything. © attabe123 / Reddit
• For about 5 years in high school/college, I used to work at the toddler section of a summer camp (18 months to 3-year-olds). I promise you, 99% of kids who cry at drop-off stop crying as soon as their parents leave. The longer the parents tried to linger and comfort their kid, the longer the kid took to calm down and have fun. The best way we found in dealing with criers was to have the parents hand them off to their favorite counselor at the gate, and immediately drive off. The counselor would then bring the child to their favorite activity and get them involved in a play, and within 5-10 minutes, the kids would be happily playing with their friends. A bunch of them wouldn’t even want to leave at the end of the day! © Muddy_Wafer / Reddit
• When my 4-year-old and my wife fight, he runs to his room bitterly angry and crying with frustration. After a while, I’ll go to his room to comfort him. He LOVES it when I explain to him in excruciating detail why he is angry, hurt, and upset. He literally starts laughing with relief, I suppose because someone “gets” him and is validating his feelings. © etrnloptimist / Reddit
• Mine is all about prevention. There is ALWAYS a reason for a tantrum — hunger, fatigue, frustration (usually from not being heard or “seen”), boredom, or unrealistic expectations. But if there is a tantrum, once the need is addressed, and either communicated or resolved, it usually dissipates. © jazinthapiper / Reddit

• A therapist once told me that my teenager just wanted to argue with me. It truly didn’t matter about what, so I should just stop arguing. State your case, i.e. “You’re not going to school today.” Then exit the argument. Refuse to argue with her. Just continue to calmly repeat, “You’re not going to school today.” You can throw in some “Is there anything else” and some “I’m done with this conversation” too. Just refuse to engage in the argument. © veganrd / Reddit
• My 4 y.o. has a lot of tantrums. Like, a lot — 15+ a day when we don’t let her do what she wants. Yesterday, I fell asleep. Should’ve been up by 8 a.m. and only woke up at 9 a.m. My 4 y.o. takes half an hour just to wake up, so this was a nightmare. I jumped out of bed, went into her room, and woke her up. She was not happy. Cue tantrum and screams because she wants to stay in bed and doesn’t want to go to daycare. I dress her up and she’s still screaming. I felt awful for her. She was just bawling her eyes out: “I want to sleep, Mom!” I sat on her bed, said, “Come here,” and I hugged her and said, “I’m sorry. I know you wanna stay in bed but Mom overslept and we need to get to school. We have to be really fast today. I’m so sorry, baby!” The crying ended there. She hugged me back and said, “It’s okay Mom. I’ll be really fast today.” What usually takes her an hour and 30 minutes to do, she did in 20 minutes. She ate, brushed her teeth, and left the house with little whining. It just goes to show how saying a simple word can make a difference in a kid’s day. I was just so proud. © unicorn-p**p1234 / Reddit
• My 3-year-old got me good the other day when I lost my temper and raised my voice at him. “Mommy, when you yell it teaches me and (baby brother) that it’s okay to yell. It’s not nice.” Geez kid, stop using my parenting tactics against me and just let me have my burnout meltdown in peace! © two__sheds / Reddit

What out-of-the-ordinary strategy has worked for you in raising your children? What do you think ideal child-rearing should look like?