Tantrums vs. Meltdowns: There is a HUGE difference- Emotional Regulation Series

Your body starts to tighten, your breath gets heavy, your mind is racing, senses are overwhelmed and your dysregulated emotions just burst... Sound familiar!? This is called a MELTDOWN...Your brain has had "too much" body is giving information that it needs HELP! It's when your brain is overloaded. This is not a misbehavior issue, it's a regulation struggle- a neurological response! So what is a TANTRUM then? "I want this...I don't like that...you need to do what I want... give me that...NOW"= Desire for control leading to emotional outburst... It can be tricky to tell the difference as a trusted adult, which is why staying curious and helping kids raise self-awareness is key! In this episode, you will discover the difference between a meltdown vs a tantrum and even hear a little from my 8 year old child with ADHD who struggles with this too. We will talk about how how brain is like a computer, at first it's doing great. Tabs open faster and faster, then suddenly it freezes up! The computer isn't being bad, it's overloaded...That's when a meltdown happens. My son shares some helpful self-talk tips : "My brain's not broken." "I wasn't being bad." "My system is overloaded." Meltdown brain is saying, "I need support, I need quiet, I need space, I need help!" Make sure you check out our February sponsor "Inflow!" This helpful resource has made it their mission to bring the right solution to individuals 13 + years and older, who are tired of dealing with the daily untamed struggles of ADHD. This app is designed for those who have tried countless strategies on their own, but they just aren't sticking. To makes it even easier, Inflow starts with a quick quiz that creates a personalized plan tailored to your brain- so you can finally get connected with strategies that work for your uniquely wired mind. I am thrilled to have Inflow as our sponsor this month so that your whole family can take even more control of your beautiful, brilliant ADHD brain! Visit to discover details and get started with this great tool today. This tool works great alongside 1:1 coaching as well. Visit me at to learn more about coaching, discover my book for kids, or just message to share a future episode topic idea!! I would love to hear from you!

You can listen to Tantrums vs. Meltdowns: There is a HUGE difference- Emotional Regulation Series online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

Tantrums vs. Meltdowns: There is a HUGE difference- Emotional Regulation Series is an episode from Journey With Me Through ADHD: A Podcast for Kids by Katelyn Mabry.

This episode is 08:52 long.

This episode was published on Feb 19, 2026.

Yes. Use the heart button on the episode page to add it to your favorite episodes list.

Yes. This page shows related episodes from Journey With Me Through ADHD: A Podcast for Kids when more episodes are available from the podcast feed.