It is not easy for parents to deal with Sibling Rivalry. It helps to understand that it is a normal part of family life. Not a very fun part of normal family life, but normal nonetheless.
One way that you can help your kids get along is to teach them to respect their sibling’s bad mood. I know that when one child is crying or whining, their sibling might use that opportunity to tease them. They will say things like:
“You are such a crybaby!”
“Why do you make such a big deal about everything?”
Or they will imitate the whining, which I find to be the most irritating. Needless to say, their sibling’s heartlessness only exacerbates the problem.
But we can look at the bright side, it is a teachable moment. It is a great opportunity to teach them to respect their sibling’s bad mood. We can say:
“When one person in our family is in a bad mood, it is more helpful if we are kind than if
we tease!”
“Sara is in a bad mood, something is bothering her. She needs a little TLC. What can we do to help her?”
When kids are in the throes of a bad mood, or a crying jag their frustration tolerance is low and they are more likely to lash out physically and hit when they are being teased.
It is helpful to point that out in the teaser:
“He does not like to be teased when he is in a good mood. He certainly does not like to be teased when he is in a bad mood. He looks like he is going to hit you. You better run and get out of his way.”
For good measure, you can also say to the Cryer/whiner/kid in the bad mood:
“You can control yourself even if you are so hurt and frustrated with the whining. You don’t need to hit. Tell him you are in a bad mood and he needs to leave you alone!”
You can also preempt the whole situation by letting all the kids in your family know that their sibling is in a bad mood and can use some kindness:
“Sammy had a rough day. I saw that when he came in he was in a bad mood. Is anybody available to do his job tonight for him? Does anyone have any other ideas on how we can help him out?”
Teaching kids to respect their sibling’s bad mood is a great life skill. One that they can use with all the relationships they may have in the future.
Learn more on how to handle sibling rivalry in my course, Sibling Rivalry 2.0. Get started HERE.