FlowingLove(Daniel Siegel) suggests helping young clowns integrate their upstairs brain and downstairs brain.
The downstairs brain includes the brain stem and the limbic region, and is responsic for basic functions like breathing and blinking. The upstairs brain includes the cerebral cortex, is more evolved, and is responsible for planning, decision making, control of emotions and body, self-understanding, and empathy.
The upstairs brain can monitor the actions of the downstairs, and help calm strong reactions, impulses, and emotions. But the downstairs brain also influences the actions of the upstairs brain.
The downstairs brain is fully developed at birth; however, the upstairs brain is not fully developed until the mid-twenties. So the upstairs brain is under construction until the teen years when it is remodelled extensively.
The amygdala is a little almond-shaped unit located in the downstairs brain, responsible for emotions, especially anger and fear. It sometimes results in acting before thinking, which is sometimes a good thing, sometimes not a good thing.
FlowingLove suggests there are 2 types of tantrums: intentional tantrums and non-intentional tantrums. Intententional tantrums are when a young clown throws a fit to get something desired, knowing full well what to do. This is the upstairs brain planning an actionto achieve a purpose. The non-intentional tantrum is a real, emotion-driven tantrum originating from the downstairs brain.
Each type of tantrum requires a different type of response from parents, either a rational, boundary-setting response or a nurturing response.