You have started doing a few things differently. You say no a little more. You sit down sometimes. One of your children has noticed, and asked why you are being weird.
What you say to your children, and whether you say anything, is yours to decide.
01
What this page will not do
It will not tell you what to say to a child, at any age.
It will not say what children understand, feel or need. Those are questions for people trained to answer them, such as a pediatrician or a licensed family therapist.
02
What stays on your side
A few things are about you and not about them.
You don't have to explain a rule to anyone. If you have named one for yourself, it is a working answer for your own use.
You can change what you do without announcing why.
03
One thing to watch in yourself
Wanting very much to explain it to them can be worth a second look. The explaining may be for them. It may also be serving you, in the way the old pattern did.
Two possibilities, among others. Under Peace, the fear is that someone's disappointment means you did something wrong. The explaining may be a way of making sure they are not upset with you. Under Right, the fear is that if you are wrong about this, what else are you wrong about. The explaining may be a way of showing you were not wrong as a parent.
Say you were right and they were upset anyway. Is that alright? No, the upset is what counts, is the Peace answer. Yes, being right settles it, is the Right answer. If neither fits, there is not enough to tell.
04
If you are worried about a child
That is not a question for this library. A pediatrician or a licensed family therapist is the right door, and What This Section Won't Tell You says why.If tonight is an emergency, call or text 988 (US). This library is not that door.
The same question about a partner is on How to Talk to Your Partner About Your Rule.