Children usually behave ‘badly’ for a reason. When you work out what’s going on can feel frustrating when your patience is already tested. Subsequently, understanding the reason makes it easier to help children.

We often hear children’s behaviour described as being challenging. Many people who work with children prefer to think of this as a child signalling their distress.

Distressed behaviour is different from the normal everyday behaviour of children.

It tends not to be a one-off. Distressed behaviour is a serious ongoing issue for parents and children. A child showing distressed behaviour demonstrates their distress through actions. These actions can be risky or harmful to themselves or others.