Posts Tagged: “parenting tip”

Discipline, Three Strategies to Change Behavior Quickly

April 15, 2019

Discipline is defined as training people to obey rules or a code of behavior. Parents often wonder what is the best way to discipline their child or teenager. Discipline has two main goals. First, two change behaviors and second to maintain the relationship. Three strategies to change behaviors quickly Improve Adult-Child Interactions: Adults must go out of their way to have positive experiences and interactions with children and teenagers. Give positive attention to the things our children do appropriately.

Prompting and Fading Parenting ADHD, Autism, & Developmental Delays

January 17, 2019

Principles of Prompting and Fading Children with ADHD, Autism and Developmental Delays can be forgetful, impulsive and prone to distractions with daily tasks. Parents often get frustrated when their child or adolescent does not complete their tasks and responsibilities completely. Using effective prompts can help parents reduce their stress and maintain the relationship. Effective prompting and fading can help children and adolescents become more independent, respectful, and responsible. Reasons for Using Prompts Prompts can be used to increase skills

Teaching Children and Adolescents Responsibility

December 10, 2018

Parents often ask me, “How do you teach your kids how to be responsible?” Responsibility is defined as the state of fact of being responsible, answerable, or accountable for something within one’s power, control, or management. So how do we teach our kids to be responsible? The Perfect Life As parents we want our children to succeed and do well socially and academically. We want our children to never have to struggle too much, be uncomfortable, or be disappointed. We

ADHD and Emotional Dysregulation

August 14, 2018

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is often thought of as a disorder of inattention and overactivity. It is also thought of as a disorder that creates difficulties in concentration and organization. New research and reports based on long-term studies of ADHD are showing that emotional instability should be treated as a core symptom of ADHD. Emotional Dysregulation: Emotional dysregulation is the inability to properly modulate and regulate emotions. Possible manifestations of emotional dysregulation include angry outbursts such as destroying or

Emotional Flat Tire

July 19, 2016

Imagine you are running late to work and you are frantically rushing out the door. As you’re hustling down the freeway trying not to speed (at least trying not to noticeably speed), you suddenly feel the car start to vibrate followed by a low juddering sound. You recognize that dreadful sound and realize that you have a flat tire at the most inconvenient time. You now have a decision to make, you can either pull to the side of the

Being a Super-Powered Parent can be a Blessing and a Curse

November 25, 2015

As a therapist I often work with very smart and capable parents. The kind of parents that seem to have the answer to someone’s problem even before that person knows they have a problem. These superpowers have helped these parents become successful in many areas of their lives. They are often ultra responsible and their employers love them for it. So why do such capable parents bring their children in for counseling? I find that one of the reasons is

8 Ways to Break Through Teenage Walls

February 19, 2015

As a child and family therapist, I have met with many teenagers who have shut down. It looks like they have put up 2-foot thick concrete walls around themselves to keep their parents and other concerned adults at a distance. By the time parents contact me, months or even years of damage has already happened in the family and the interactions of shutting down and pushing away have become habits. Sometimes the parent and the child don’t even know or

Conflict, Then Resolution

October 13, 2014

Recently, there seems to be a pattern among the families that I have been working with as a therapist. The pattern starts by the child acting rude and disrespectful. The parent then gets offended and upset and eventually sends the child to their room. Afterwards, nothing is really talked about or resolved between the parent and the child related to the situation that occurred. After a while of following this pattern, kids stop liking being around their parents and the

What is the difference between nurturing and coddling?

March 22, 2014

Have you ever heard someone tell a new mother that if she keeps picking up her child when he is crying she is going to spoil him? Is it true? Is it possible that nurturing a child can go too far to the point that it becomes coddling? At what point can nurturing become coddling? To understand these questions, we must first understand what it is that children need. Do

Loving Relationships Give Consequences Their Power

February 26, 2014

In the updated Love and Logic Parenting Class – Parenting the Love and Logic Way, Jim and Charles Fay share the following observation, “Our heart breaks every time we see someone falling into the ‘consequence trap.’ Well-meaning parents become ensnared in this trap when they believe that the solution to all of their problems involves finding bigger or better consequences.” They go on to explain, “Freeing oneself involves understanding that loving relationships give consequences their power. Releasing oneself means continuing