When my 5 year old daughter and 3 year old son play, sometimes you can see it in their laughter that they have frenetic energy. It’s the kind of energy that is intense, extremely volatile, and very difficult to control. I now notice it the second it starts up because it’s like a race car revving up.

There are times when frenetic energy is fine, such as when there isn’t bedtime around the corner or when it isn’t mealtime. If we are sitting down and eating, then we have a huge problem with frenetic energy because they tend to start laughing historically and making a huge mess throwing things. Then the mess makes them laugh even more and the cycle continues. Frenetic energy is hectic and they feed off of each other’s actions.

This is when I am most frustrated and triggered as a parent. I have tried to reason with them and ask them multiple times to cut it out. I have also raised my voice on countless occasions to snap them out of the frenetic energy cycle. None of those things seem to work. The best thing to do is either to take them outside to a playground and have them burn off the frenetic energy or to separate them so they cannot feed off of each other. It’s quite the situation to manage and I’m always relieved when it is over. In the future, I need to make sure to be more preventative so that they are tired enough to just relax close to bedtime or before we eat a meal. Just part of the craziness of having kids.