The restless and excitable child: for parents, carers and
anyone who work with young people
About this factsheet
This is one in a series of factsheets for parents, teachers
and young people entitled Mental Health and Growing Up.
The aims of these factsheets are to provide practical, up-to-date
information about mental health problems (emotional, behavioural
and psychiatric disorders) that can affect children and young
people. This factsheet looks at the reasons behind why some
children are more restless and excitable than others, gives advice
about how to deal with an overactive child and suggests where to go
to get extra help if you feel you are unable to cope on your
own.
Introduction
Young children are often restless and excitable. Their noisy
liveliness is usually just a part of being young. Although it may
be tiring, it is usually nothing to worry about.
Sometimes youngsters may be so active and noisy that it makes
life difficult for their parents and other children. A child like
this may be demanding and excitable and chatter away nineteen to
the dozen. He may be noisy, may not do as he's told, and will
probably find it difficult to sit still. Adults may say that he's
hyperactive, but the trouble with this word is that people use it
to describe everything from normal high spirits to sometimes
dangerous behaviour, such as running out into a busy road. It may
be that he is overactive rather than hyperactive.
What makes children overactive?
There are many things that can make a child overactive. The
following should give you some guidance as to the reasons for your
child's behaviour. Finding the reasons may help you to come up with
some solutions to combat the problem.
Being a parent
If parents are unhappy, depressed or worried, they tend to pay
less attention to their children. They may find they can't spend
the time they need to help them play constructively, or they may
find that when they do play with them, they spend a lot of time
telling them to be quiet. Children learn from this that they have
to be naughty or noisy to get any attention from their mum or
dad.
No clear rules
It is important to have simple rules about what is allowed and
what is not. If two parents are involved, they both need to agree
about the rules, and be consistent and fair when they say `no'.
This will help the child to know what is expected and to learn
self-control (see Factsheet 2 on good parenting and Factsheet 4 on
behavioural and conduct problems).
Temperament
We are all born with different temperaments. Some children are
livelier, noisier and more outgoing than others. They may prefer
going out and being with other people than quietly reading a book
or playing with toys by themselves. Quite often, children who are
active like this are also excitable and may go over the top while
playing. Although this can be a nuisance, it is nothing to worry
about, but you may need some help in finding ways to help your
child calm down.
Learning problems
Some children find it hard to learn things that other children
find easy. They may need special help at school. They may seem
quite young for their age and find it hard to concentrate on work
or control their behaviour as well as other children (
see factsheet 10 on general learning
disability).
Hearing problems
Glue ear is a common example of a hearing problem. If a child
has glue ear, they will find it hard to hear what other people say,
will tend to shout and may want the television turned up very
loudly.
Food
Some children do seem to react to certain foods by becoming
restless and irritable. This is not as common as some people think,
but occasionally, it can be a real problem.
If you are concerned that your child is affected by
attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder or hyperkinetic
disorder (hyperactivity), see
Factsheet 5 on ADHD and hyperkinetic disorder
for further information.
How can I get my child to calm down?
Try to make sure you spend time with your child on their own,
so that they know you are interested in them. This will give you
the chance to plan and
praise.
Spend time with your children doing something they enjoy. Get
into a routine and plan what they are going to be
doing for the day or the weekend. You can make sure that they have
time for noisy, energetic play so that they can work off some of
their energy. You can also make clear times when you expect them to
play quietly on their own.
Take every opportunity to praise your child.
Be as clear as possible. It is vital that they understand exactly
what they have done to please you. For example, `you've been
playing so quietly on your own … what a good boy you are' or `what
a good footballer you are'.
Where can I get help?
Lively, excitable behaviour is a common problem for parents.
Your health visitor will be used to giving advice about this. If
there seems to be a problem with your child's hearing, or if there
seems to be a reaction to foods, your general practitioner should
be able to help. If they think that there might be a learning
difficulty or a hyperactivity disorder, they will refer you to a
clinical psychologist, paediatrician or child psychiatrist.
Sources of further information
- The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children
(NSPCC) produces helpful information for parents and carers. Three
useful booklets: 'Stress' - A Guide for
Parents,'Putting Children First' - A Guide for Parents of
0_5 Year Olds and 'Listening to Children' - A Guide for
Parents and Carers. NSPCC Publications Department, Weston
House, 42 Curtain Road, London EC2A 3NH; tel: 020 7825 2775;
www.nspcc.org.uk.
- Webster Stratton, C. (1992) The Incredible Years: A
Troubleshooting Guidefor Parents of Children Aged
3_8. London: Umbrella Press.
- Parentline offers help and advice to parents bringing up
children and teenagers. Helpline 0808 800 2222; textphone 0800 783
6783; www.parentlineplus.org.uk.
- The Mental Health and Growing Up series contains 36
factsheets on a range of common mental health problems. To order
the pack, contact Book Sales at the Royal College of Psychiatrists,
17 Belgrave Square, London SW1X 8PG; tel: 020 7235 2351, ext: 146;
fax: 020 7245 1231; e-mail: booksales@rcpsych.ac.uk, or
you can download them from this website.
References
- Carr, A. (ed.) (2000) What Works with Children and
Adolescents? A Critical Review of Psychological Interventions with
Children, Adolescents and their Families. London:
Brunner-Routledge.
- Rutter, M. & Taylor, E. (eds) (2002) Child and
Adolescent Psychiatry (4th edn). London: Blackwell.
- Scott, A., Shaw, M. & Joughin, C. (2001) Finding the
Evidence: A Gateway to the Literature in Child and Adolescent
Mental Health (2nd edn). London: Gaskell.
© [2004]
Royal College of Psychiatrists. This factsheet may be downloaded,
printed out, photocopied and distributed free of charge as long as
the Royal College of Psychiatrists is properly credited and no
profit is gained from its use. Permission to reproduce it in any
other way must be obtained from the Head of Publications. The College
does not allow reposting of its factsheets on other sites, but
allows them to be linked to directly.
Please note that we are unable to offer advice on individual cases. Please see our FAQ for advice on getting help.
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