Disappointment is hard. It’s hard for me sometimes. It is hard for children. It is extremely tough for people with neurological difficulties. No surprise. It is a social/emotional skill so it causes a child with these social delays that struggle with disappointment.
My observation has been that dealing with disappointment is one of the most difficult social skills for these individuals. Why? I don’t know. All I know is what I’ve seen.
Here are some areas it might be seen.
- Losing a turn in a board game
- Being on a losing team while competing in sports and in a classroom setting
- Not being chosen to answer a question
- Situation did not turn out as he expected (it does not matter if is out of anyone’s control-he often is not able to be ok with that)
- Disappointment is often seen as “you lied to me” meaning you did not deliver what you promised
I’m sure as a parent, each of you reading could give lots of examples. The bottom line is that this is hard. It requires a lot of preparation for a child to endure well. When my son was younger, I tried to explain any possible outcome ahead of time. I certainly could not think of everything but this approach helped him prepare himself for disappointment.
