Are My Girls Discipline Problems?

[snowykitty]

I have two girls that are 8 and 10.  I am a divorced mother with sole custody and the girls only see their father maybe once a year.  I moved out of their home state of Ohio to Texas in August of 2000 and have been divorced 2 1/2 years.  The problem is that the girls are sassy and yell and scream when they don't get their own way.  They are also physically aggressive with each other when they make each other mad.  They both lose their tempers and the younger one does some strange things like peeing in a cup and a bottle and trying to hide it.  She also pulled on my mother's wallpaper and unwraveled a few strands of it.  My mother thinks she is disruptive, but I don't know if it's something all kid's go through or not.  She is very bright in school and participates in the gifted program.  The older one is still throwing temper tantrums.  Both of them are fine with other people except me and my parents.  We have gone to a therapist once and are going again soon.  I get at my whits end when all this yelling goes on and I raise my voice too.  I have tried all methods of discipline and nothing seems to work.  Please provide any input you may have as to what I should do.

[Kevin Kennedy, Ph.D.]

The fact that the girls are OK in out-of-home settings is reassuring. Their difficulties occur in their family interactions, and the appointment is a good idea. You might ask the therapist for some guidance re: behavior management - it sounds like you need to develop a bit more competence in that area. Now, the urinating in the cup/bottle is an unusual behavior, and privately mention this to the therapist. It is probably indicative of some sort of emotional unrest or thought disorder.