I’m back with a solo episode for the first time in a little while and I’m talking about the three pieces of parenting advice that I am loving right now. Parenting advice can be tricky because something might really resonate with you at one moment in time, but a year later you can feel completely different about the whole thing. With that in mind, these are three things that have been on my mind in this present moment that I think are not only applicable to parenting but also in life. There is a lot about parenting and life advice that go hand in hand. The way we parent our kids has to be in alignment with the way we parent ourselves, parent through challenges, and parent over the course of ups and downs. Here are the three things I talk about in this episode: 

Slowing Down

• Creating awareness around the pattern of over filling your schedule and recognizing when it’s happening and why. 
• Being more intentional about saying yes to things.
• Slowing down forces you to look at your inner self and what your needs are rather than constantly serving others. 
• In parenting, slowing down allows us to be more thoughtful and present rather than emotional and reactive. 

Express Empathy Towards Your Kids 

• Empathy is the ability to sit with another and allow them to express their feeling or emotion without the desire to change it. 
• Wanting your kids to calm down or change their emotions is not helping them learn the life skill of regulation. 
• We don’t have to fix or change anything, we can just let it be. Being held by someone who is just listening and supporting is the most comforting thing.

Inviting Moments of Discomfort

• The real way you learn about ourselves is through struggle. When we are in uncomfortable moments we learn things like resilience and flexibility. 
• Uncomfortable moments build a foundation of self trust that is an incredible life skill. 
• You never know what leaning into discomfort might bring your way and what doors might open because of it. 
• Encouraging your kids to try something that will put them in a slightly uncomfortable situation helps them grow their confidence.

Resources: 

My article about slowing down in parenting: https://theeverymom.com/parenting-coach-wellness-advice/

Listen to the Dr. Shefali podcast episode here: https://theparentingreframe.com/podcast-episodes/episode-54-conscious-parenting-with-dr-shefali/

Elise Loehnen’s podcast episode with Nicole Avant: https://www.eliseloehnen.com/episodes/h1mjtwhv3bo2nddnd6ikmoj8ogsbzf-nkwfb-lpty8

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I hope you found this episode helpful; for more parenting tips, check out my website and blog for more information. https://theparentingreframe.com/

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