Emotional Overload

I have been struggling for a little while now with Brady having temper tantrums and angry out busts. It has been so troubling to see him get so frustrated and most of the time he seems so out of control that it seems almost impossible to even ration with him in the moment. It is usually triggered by something he can't have or he is told he has to wait for, something someone else has done to him that made him angry, or just plain being told no and he doesn't like it. He will scream and kick and eventually it will usually escalate into an all out fit where he can't even control himself enough to listen to reason. It has been so frustrating and most of the time I get to a point where I feel like I am going to loose it! I have been putting him in time out at the first sign of his fit and allowing time to calm himself down before I try to talk to him. This seems to be working a bit, and I think it has been good for him to learn how to get himself under control emotionally, but today I had a new thought.

Anytime my children go through a phase where they are crying a lot or seem overly emotional, it is usually a time when they are transitioning from one "season" or mile stone in their stages of growth or trying to test new boundaries. I think right now, Brady is moving into a "season" where he is trying to articulate his emotions.
Today we were at Chick-Fila and all three kids where in the play area while I ordered our food. When I was ready to eat I called them all to come out to our table. The 2 older ones grabbed their shoes and came running out leaving Brady behind. All the sudden, right through the glass enclosed play area, I heard a piercing scream and Brady soon came flying out of the play area and ran right up to his brother slapping him across the back as hard as he could screaming something I couldn't even understand because he was so out of control. (Yes, embarrassingly right there in front of the entire lunch time crowded restaurant!)
My initial reaction was to snatch him up and head straight for some in the car discipline, but as I looked at Brady's eyes filled with tears I could tell that there was something else going on here. Brady was overwhelmed with emotion and didn't know how to deal with it. I stooped down right then and there and asked Brady how he felt at that moment. He said "MAD!" I agreed with him that he looked mad and that it wasn't very nice for Tori and Zack to not wait for him. I then asked him if he felt "scared" and as his eyes filled with more tears he said yes. I took a few moments to tell him how he should have dealt with his emotions rather than how he did. I told him to go up to Zack and tell him that he made him mad when he left him, and that he felt scared. He went right up to Zack and told him. I could tell already that he was feeling better. I put myself in his shoes and asked him if he thought that if one of my friends made me mad, would it be OK for me to scream at her and then go hit her?? He agreed no. I now know that it is going to be important for me to not only teach Brady how to get his emotions under control, but also how to handle them in the appropriate way. I thanked God for allowing me the patience to turn this into a teachable moment rather than just getting frustrated with him and missing the opportunity to see what it is Brady really needs.
Once I feel like he knows what the right thing to do is and still chooses to throw a fit or lash out, then I guess that will be the time when discipline will come back into the picture, but for right now, I think what Brady needs is to learn how to identify with his emotions and how to react to them properly.