How I Got My Kids to Stop Whining in Only 3 Days

How I Got My Kids to Stop Whining in Only 3 Days
Expressing ourselves without complaining or blaming is a skill worth having at any age. Marina Andrejchenko/Shutterstock
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For this mother of two young, world-class whiners, the techniques described in the booklet seemed way too simple to be effective, the promised results too good to be true. In desperation, however, I decided to give the anti-whining program -- guaranteed to be appropriate for toddlers and up -- my best shot by following the simple daily instructions.

Day 1

Whenever a boy whined, I got down to his level, looked him straight in the eye and said in a firm yet gentle voice, “Stop whining! I cannot listen to you when you whine because it gives me a headache.”

Next, I imitated what he said and how he said it, right down to his nasally, high-pitched, singsong tone. Last, I restated what he had said in a grown-up voice, leaving out the complaining and blaming, and required him to repeat it to me in his normal voice.

Mary Hunt
Mary Hunt
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