Kid headed for a meltdown? These expert-approved strategies can help them calm down

To start, kids need to understand that their feelings aren’t bad. They’re allowed to have strong feelings — everyone does. “But we need to make sure that the behaviors that go along with those feelings don’t get them into trouble,” Stephanie Lee, Psy.D., senior director of the ADHD and Behavior Disorders Center at the Child Mind Institute, told TODAY. “We want to give them different behaviors to turn to.”