SAN DIEGO -- Most parents find themselves at a loss when faced with bad behavior. However, there are experts in San Diego who can help parents with their out-of-control children.

Helen Murphy's daughter, Keeshia, started having problems when she was in the first grade.

"It got to the point where she started running away from school and being sent home because of the way she was acting," Murphy said.

But the troubles can start earlier than first grade, 10News reported.

Life coach Adelaide Zindler said, "There is actually an unspoken of, if you will, epidemic of preschool expulsion. It is not just (happening) locally in our community -- it's across the nation."

That's right. Children are being kicked out of preschool for misbehaving.

Typically the problem is aggressiveness, tantrums and biting. Zindler said that behavior is not just a phase.

"It's not just a localized issue in a preschool setting, but it can carry on into later life," Zindler said.

What's causes these behavior problems in children?

Catherine Padilla with the YMCA's Behavioral Health Services said part of the problem is the amount of time spent in day care.

Padilla said, "It's not unusual to see 3- and 4-year-olds spending six, seven, sometimes 10 hours a day, in a child-care setting. As adults, we're barely able to tolerate those kinds of hours."

Change can also cause behavioral problems.

"All of a sudden there's a marriage, there's a divorce, there's a new baby coming, there's a move to a new location -- all these things could cause a child to feel disrupted," Padilla said.

Murphy believes it was a move to a new school that sent her daughter spinning out of control. It took help from psychiatrists, medication and a lot of hard work with Zindler to bring Keeshia back to "normal."

"She was able to teach me that how to express my feelings," Keeshia said.

Murphy advises parents to ask for help when their children starting acting out.

"I wish I would have asked for help the day that she started acting not herself because we probably could have nipped it in the bud a little bit sooner," Murphy said.

If your child has a behavioral problem and is under the age of 5 years old, you can get help from the YMCA's Child Care Resource Service. It's free, thanks to funding from the First Five Commission of San Diego, 10News' partner in Project QKids.

For more information on YMCA's services, visit www.ymcacrs.org/ or call (800) 908-8883.