Emotional and Behavioural Regulation
Learn emotional regulation skills to help your child or teen process their own feelings.
Support your children with a compassionate approach for managing their behavioural dysregulation to reduce suffering and build resilience.
Through therapy and coaching, learn how to free yourself of negative and stuck patterns, and savour more positive emotions with your family.
- Does your child/teen have frequent emotional outbursts?
- Do they struggle to calm down when upset?
Is your child easily overwhelmed by strong feelings? - Does it feel like their emotions impact the whole family?
- Or does your child struggle to show emotions at all and tend to bottle everything up only to explode when they are overwhelmed?
While all children struggle at times, your child may not yet have enough emotional control or an understanding of their own emotions and behaviours- they need help. As a parent, you have the privilege to teach your children (no matter age!) the invaluable skill of emotional regulation to avoid unhealthy emotional suppression or outbursts. Emotions aren’t inherently good or bad—they are messengers and we can learn how to interpret them and manage them.


What is Emotional and Behavioural Dysregulation?
Emotional and behavioural regulation is the ability to manage and modulate one’s responses to various situations. This regulation is about tolerance for distress, which is the ability to withstand and cope with uncomfortable feelings before engaging in unhelpful, maladaptive, or impulsive behavior.
Children, adolescents, and young adults who have difficulty regulating their emotions have a smaller window of tolerance and therefore find it hard navigating difficult experiences and making rational decisions in the face of intense emotions.
Understanding the Challenges
Emotional and behavioural dysregulation represents a complex and interconnected challenge that affects many children and adolescents. These two domains of difficulty are not separate issues but deeply intertwined experiences that reinforce and amplify each other in a challenging and often self-reinforcing cycle.
The Negative Emotional- Behavioural Dysregulation Cycle
For example, emotional dysregulation can lead to behavioural outbursts, and in turn, these problematic behaviours can simultaneously intensify emotional distress. As the cycle persists, parents may respond in ways that also exacerbate the intensity, frequency, and duration of these moments. Ultimately, children, adolescents and parents report many challenges associated with handling adversity, maintaining relationships, and feeling effective in their lives.
Often, this is because they didn’t learn what to do instead. This type of regulation is a learned skill. Much of this learning starts at home in the parent-child relationship. This is why we take significant care and attention in assessing and analysing the family dynamics so that parents can learn better emotion regulation of difficult emotions and impulse control, how to attune to their child in these challenging moments, and how to plan ahead for next stressors that life will inevitably bring.
Key Symptoms of Emotional and Behavioural Dysregulation Include:
- Severe and prolonged temper tantrums that go beyond typical childhood emotional responses
- Low tolerance for frustration, leading to quick and intense emotional escalations
- Frequent aggressive outbursts or unexpected emotional reactions
- Persistent negative emotional states that interfere with daily functioning
- Refusal to engage in expected activities or social interactions
- Hard time regulating emotional responses to seemingly minor triggers
- Potential thoughts or expressions of self-harm
Our Approach to Emotional and Behavioural Regulation
At FFEW, we understand the stress and worry that children with emotional and behavioural regulation challenges can pose in the family. We also know that regulation skills can be learned and developed.
We work with your child to build the skills they need to improve their mental health and well-being, build healthy relationships, and develop their ability to manage stress. Supporting them will also restore harmony within your family and help you make beautiful and peaceful memories.
Parent Involvement is Key in Emotional Regulation
As a parent, you play a vital role in supporting your child or adolescent’s mental health. Our approach at FFEW is built on the reciprocal model of parenting, a framework that prioritizes meaningful interactions between parents and children.
It’s a two-way street—children influence parents as much as parents influence children. This process shapes a child’s mental health and resilience. This dual influence determines how a child will respond to unpleasant emotions. We equip parents and caregivers with evidence based psychological strategies and theories to better understand their children and adolescents.
When working with us, you will feel more confident handling your child’s intense emotions and behaviours in the present moment because we give you the framework, tools, and strategies that you need to support your child or teen. Parents who work with our psychologists, psychotherapists, and social workers have reported enjoying better relationships with their children and more positive feelings in place of ongoing negative experiences.
About Dr. Zia Lakdawalla & the FFEW Team
Dr. Zia, Ph.D, C.Psych, is the Founder of Foundations for Emotional Wellness (FFEW) and our resident Child & Adolescent Psychologist. Zia founded FFEW to offer therapy to kids of all ages and teens in Toronto, after working in multiple health care settings for more than a decade.
Known for her compassionate and science-based approach,
Zia expanded the clinic in recent years, welcoming more psychologists, psychotherapists, and social workers. Our evidence-based approach focuses on the mental well-being of all family members involved. We feel honoured to work with kids, teens, and parents every day, bringing more harmony and peace into your home.

Emotional and Behavioural Regulation: Our Tailored Treatment Options
Therapy for the Child & Adolescent
Individual Therapy with a Skilled Therapist
- There are several evidence-based approaches that help children and adolescents develop stronger emotion regulation skills.
- Our treatments weave together key components of Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) and Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT).
- These modalities help young children and youth understand negative thought patterns that contribute to negative moods, develop effective problem-solving strategies, learn skills to cope with difficult situations, and manage emotions more effectively.
- A positive side effect we often see after a child goes to therapy is improved social skills and a better quality of life in all aspects of life
Parent Coaching
OPTION A
One-on-One Parent
Coaching Sessions
- Individual parent coaching involves working one-on-one with a skilled therapist or psychologist to develop strategies and skills to support the child.
- This approach focuses on:
- Helping parents to respond effectively to their child’s emotions
- Supporting parents to be sturdy leaders of their family, by empowering them with effective tools and strategies to equip their children for the future
- Addressing parental regulation challenges and stress that may be impacting the child’s treatment progress
- Customizing the coaching to meet the unique needs and circumstances of the family
OPTION B
Parenting Emotionally Intense Children
Group Therapy for Parents
- Our Parenting Emotionally Intense Children group intervention has been running for several years and is highly sought after.
- This program offers a supportive environment where caregivers can learn valuable skills to optimize healthy outcomes in emotionally intense children.
- Through didactic teaching, skill-building exercises, and peer support, participants will gain insights into understanding emotion dysregulation in children.