When Jason is ranting and raving, don’t even think about talking with him. He won’t hear a thing. Why is that?
When people are upset, adrenaline and cortisol flood their brains and short circuits their ability to think. These chemicals are designed to give you the energy and strength to run away or stand and fight. They are not chemicals designed for thinking.
Once Jason is calm and a bit of time has passed, the follow-up “life lesson” can happen. Help him to do two things, know how to avoid the event in the future and give him ways to handle it when it happens again ("when" not "if"). Assure him that practice really does make perfect and he’ll get better at handling life as he moves along.
Remember that you're human, too, and vulnerable to the same kind of "brain behavior", so check your anger when you're working with him. You are teaching him how to be a healthy adult. It takes years and lots of practice, so get ready.
You can do this. Claudia
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