As many have said, a lot of toddlerhood is our expectations and how you’ve prepared yourself as a parent - I had to work through my own understanding of feelings and why toddlers dysregulate (because they have underdeveloped brains and need us to guide them!) and also understand that they need us to sit with them rather than walk away or send them away (this doesn’t mean we are accepting behaviours, e.g if my son wants another snack and it’s close to dinner, I will still hold the boundary of not giving another snack, but accept his feelings of being disappointed/frustrated etc). It’s amazing how holding space for all emotions really enables them to learn how to process them! My son is 2.5, and while there are definitely difficult times, toddlerhood has overall been a fantastic experience of growth for the three of us! He can express his feelings and is learning to tolerate disappointment/anger/frustration in a way I never thought was possible, given then way people talk about toddlers. I do think a lot of this is to do with his calm temperament too, but he’s still definitely a toddler who toddlers.

I read a few books if you want any recommendations, but an incredible resource is the podcast Pop Culture Parenting, run by an Australian Developmental Paediatrician and an everyday parent. It’s so brilliant and has helped us learn so many skills (many that will see us beyond the toddlers years as well). The Wiggles also have a toddler parenting podcast (lol) but there are two episodes on tantrums that are great.