Preventative maintenance for every family

Laura Markham, PhD Clinical Psychologist, shares advice for parents on what preventative family maintenance is and explains how it can help your child learn to cope with whatever life throws at him or her
Parenting Tips - Preventative Maintenance For Every Family
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Preventative maintenance for every family

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Every family needs preventive maintenance to keep kids on track and feeling good. To help them more through the emotions that up on the course of daily life and the anxieties and fears that every child experiences. So what kind of preventive maintenance? One, empathy, needs to be your go to with your child no matter what they are expressing. They don't want to take a bath, "oh sweetie, I hear you. You really wish you didn't have to take a bath. I bet when you get bigger you'll never take a bath". Start with empathy then you set your limits - still bath time. That's preventive maintenance because it keeps your child connected with you while you're still setting limits. Secondly, emotion coaching. When your child has a meltdown because she just can't take anymore whatever is going on, be with her. It's fine for her to cry. It's not okay for her to hate you but it's completely fine for her to cry and have her feelings. And once she gets those feelings out, you'll be amazed how much more smoothly your whole evening goes. So preventive maintenance would be: first, empathy and second, emotion coaching and finally special time. Special time is our way of filling your child up with love. That will make your child be able to cope with whatever life throws at him.

Laura Markham, PhD Clinical Psychologist, shares advice for parents on what preventative family maintenance is and explains how it can help your child learn to cope with whatever life throws at him or her

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Laura Markham, PhD

Clinical Psychologist

Dr. Laura Markham is the author of Peaceful Parent, Happy Kids: How to Stop Yelling and Start Connecting. She earned her PhD in Clinical Psychology from Columbia University and has worked as a parenting coach with countless parents across the English-speaking world, both in person and via phone. You can find Dr. Laura online at AhaParenting.com, the website of Aha! Moments for parents of kids from birth through the teen years, where you can sign up for her free daily inspiration email.  Dr. Laura lives in New York with her husband and her kids, who are now 17 and 21.

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