Our ds7 is also notorious for blurting out answers and not waiting his turn during academic exercises, but our primary concerns are his emotional meltdowns over frustration and perfectionism and his outbursts with other kids: he raises his voice or yells at other kids if they don't respond well to his "constructive criticism" or if they "insult" him in some way. He also gets loud and overreacts if another child tries to cut in line in front of him or refuses to let him join in a game or activity. He's been described as "so sensitive". So, our goal is to reduce the number of loud outbursts in the classroom.
DS started counseling a couple of weeks ago, and one thing we are learning to do is guided relaxation where ds closes his eyes while we tell him a story. We talk about going somewhere relaxing but not emotionally charged one way or another, slowly add in a little anxiety inducing component, quickly move out of it to another calm place, and end up in a very wonderful peaceful place filled with love and happiness. We take him there alone in his mind so that he can go back there alone anytime he wants. We've only been doing it for a couple of weeks, but ds is really into it. Getting him to go there in the middle of a meltdown is not easy, however. Hopefully with practice this will get easier.
Sometimes when the therapist does the guided relaxation, he'll ask ds questions. For example, in one scenario, towards the end ds was in a row boat headed for an island. He got out of his boat onto a beautiful deserted island and did a little exploring. All of a sudden it started pouring and there was a terrible storm. He told ds to find some shelter and then asked him what his shelter looked like. When the storm ended, it revealed a beautiful clear sky, however his boat was filled with water and too heavy for him to move. He was in no danger but wondering how he was going to get off the island. Then he heard a motor boat and looked up to see it headed his way. When the boat reached land, the therapist asked ds who was in it. Ds said it was his dad and that he tied the boats together with rope and took him and his boat home.
I'm not sure completely how it all works psychologically, but I know part of it is to provide ds with a safe place to go in his mind when he's feeling overwhelmed or upset. Also, over time, I think it desensitizes him to stress and trains the brain that stressful events and temporary, that he is capable of rescuing himself, but that he is never alone. He can always get help from a parent, teacher, or friend.
Not sure how relevant this is to your situation, but I thought I'd share just in case.
