Hi - my son is 7 years old and very emotional and over-sensitive. I'm not sure what to do about this. I worry about him socially. He does have a couple of friends but he is certainly not a "typical" 7 year old boy. I have asked my husband to spend more "boy time" with him and have decided that we will praise him more as he really doesn't have much confidence (surprisingly his father has too much). What can I do? Any suggestions?
My friend has a boy of 8 who has always been oversensitive. He is very clever and is quite sporty but is very weepy. She has tried to get her husband to help but he doesn't understand him. He has improved but recently got worse again. Her other children are not over-sensitive. The mother is quite sensitive. I think to a certain extent it is just the way he is. You just have to teach sensitive children ways of coping and not showing their sensitive side to school friends too much as they get older. It is great to praise him up but accept he is who he is and help him learn strategies of coping. My friend has a reward chart at the mo. to reward him when he doesn't get over emotional over something that would usually upset him. Not all boys are typical boys. That's OK. My son is a friend of this boy and accepts him as he is. My son, although not weepy, isn't sporty. they are all different. I have taught secondary school for 10 years and I also noticed that some children cry at anything but I'm not always sure they are any more upset than those who don't cry. None of this probably helps... but be encouraged....he isn't the only one.
My 8 year old son is the same. He is very emotional and always has been. My daughter is also emotional and so are most of my family. It's just the way they are. It can be trying and worrying, but there are benefits: at least he is showing what he is feeling and not bottling it up. With your help he can learn to deal with his emotions, or at least recognise them. I'm trying to do this for my son and live in hope that this will make him a kind and caring guy.
Oddly, he is popular at school and no-one has teased him for being tearful.
