The pandemic made my kids more demanding. How do I turn things around?

According to Patricia Saul, a psychotherapist in Wyckoff, N.J., when kids push back on our asks, or ignore them outright, it’s a result of all of the pent-up emotions — and lack of stimulation — they’re feeling right now. “We’ve all relaxed our standards, but adults can handle a lack of norms for a while, because, cognitively, we know that someday we’ll go back to doing the things we did before,” she said. “Kids don’t know that. And they’re angry at the shut-down. A school year in a kid’s life feels like 10 years.”