GLOSSARY · Sensory & Neurodivergent Play
Meltdown vs. Tantrum
A meltdown is an involuntary response to being overwhelmed, not a choice or a bid for something — which is what actually separates it from a tantrum.
Detailed definition
A tantrum is usually goal-directed — it tends to ease off once the thing being asked for is off the table. A meltdown isn’t that. It’s an involuntary response to being overwhelmed, and it doesn’t respond to negotiation or “calming down” on request, because the person having it isn’t choosing it in the first place. Mixing the two up leads to treating an overload response like a discipline problem, which doesn’t help anyone.
On game night, that distinction matters for how you read a rough moment. A kid melting down mid-game usually isn’t about the game itself — it’s sensory overload that built up past the point of managing. A sensory break, or swapping to something that carries the Quiet Kit tag next time, is a more useful response than pushing through.
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