Category: Parenting
-
Beyond Sticker Charts: Potty Learning Through a Neurodivergent Lens
Potty learning can become one of the most frustrating, emotional, and surprisingly public parts of parenting. A child may understand what the toilet is for but still avoid it. They may use it successfully for several days and then begin having accidents again. They may sit willingly at school but refuse at home, or use… Read more
-
HALT for Families: Pause, Check In, Then Choose
A child reaches for another snack twenty minutes after eating. They snap at a sibling over something small. They burst into tears when asked to put on shoes. They wander around the house saying they are bored, but reject every suggestion. It can be tempting to focus immediately on the behavior: “Why are you eating… Read more
-
The Homecoming Plan: Supporting a Teen After Inpatient Mental Health Treatment
Coming home after inpatient mental health treatment can bring relief, hope, fear, and uncertainty into the house at the same time. Parents may feel grateful to have their child home while also wondering: The young person may also be carrying several conflicting feelings. They may desperately want normalcy but feel nowhere near normal. They may… Read more
-
Rupture and Repair: What to Do After Your Nervous System Takes Over
You recognized that your Watchdog brain took over. You can see that you shut down, snapped, withdrew, blamed, yelled, became defensive, agreed to something you did not mean, or tried to end the discomfort as quickly as possible. Maybe you understand why it happened. Your nervous system sensed danger and responded with the tools it… Read more
-
Power and Control In Parenting
Yelling + Spanking Don’t Build Connection (and what to do instead) Many of us were raised with spanking, and cultural and family traditions around discipline vary. This handout shares what research and major child-health organizations recommend, along with options for firm limits that protect connection. Spanking and/or yelling can stop behavior quickly, but it often… Read more
-
What IDK Really Means