I am M41 and have a son who is M6. I have posted before about how he is quite sensitive and cries a lot.
Whenever he cries, he will ask for TV to calm him down. I am wondering whether it is wise to give him TV. I worry lest he learn that the way to handle unpleasant emotions is to distract yourself from them with (relatively mindless) entertainment. That doesn't sound like a great emotion management habit... but on the other hand, it might be good enough at his age.
For example, today there was a miscommunication with a friend's family. He thought his friend was giving him some toys, which was apparently not what the other kid meant. When my little guy was told that he could not take the toys home, he cried for a while, and it took TV to calm him down.
I would like advice. Is it fine to give him TV when he cries? And what alternatives can you suggest?
Thanks in advance!
Piggybacking off jared, model good behavior when dealing with "big feelings". Give your son the language t describe his feelings and help him talk it through. Start with something like, "wow, it must have been really frustrating when you thought you were getting those toys and didn't. I would have been pretty sad about that too. Is that how you feel?" Then build on that over time. Start asking what he thinks should be done about it. It's going to take time, effort, and repetition. It will be painful for both of you, but talking about it out loud together through all sorts of scenarios as they happen will give him the tools and language to build emotional intelligence.
This is the exact approach I used the most when my kid was a little younger.
As with everything in parenting, consistency and patience are your two best tools.