Guest Speaker: When Demands Feel Too Much: Supporting Demand-Avoidant Behaviour Through Regulation
At a glance
Guest speaker
Dr Kirstie Rees
Webinar duration
2 hours
Suitable for
Thrive Licensed Practitioners
CPD
Worth 5 CPD points
Price per place
£78 excl. VAT
Course outcomes
By the end of this 2-hour session, you will:
- Understand what a child’s demand-avoidant behaviours may be communicating
- Feel more confident using co-regulation to support the development of a child’s self-regulation skills
- Be equipped with strategies that reduce stress and limit demands, while maintaining clear and supportive boundaries
- Understand how to use a relational approach when responding to demand-avoidant behaviours
Who is it for?
This session is suitable for Thrive Licensed Practitioners working in early years, primary and secondary settings.
Introducing guest speaker: Dr Kirstie Rees
Dr Kirstie Rees is a specialised educational and child psychologist, with extensive experience and research in the areas of learning disabilities, neurodiversity and mental health.
She has written a number of articles for different publications and is author of the book: ‘The Mental Health and Wellbeing of Children and Young People with Learning Difficulties: A Guide for Educators’.
Kirstie provides training, consultation and support to a number of organisations and carries out therapeutic work with individual children and their families. She has also worked as a tutor on the MSC in Educational Psychology at the University of Dundee and chairs the Scottish branch of the Association of Child and Adolescent Mental Health.
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What you'll learn
The aims and objectives of the session include:
- Develop a clear understanding of demand-avoidant behaviour as a response to stress
- Recognise how everyday school demands (instructions, transitions, expectations) can trigger stress responses in some pupils
- Understand the role of co-regulation in reducing distress and supporting emotional safety
- Explore how self-regulation develops over time and why it cannot be expected without adult support
- Gain practical, adaptable strategies to reduce escalation and demands, increase engagement, while maintaining boundaries