Mindful Moments Blog
Mindful Moments Blog
Boundaries Give My Child This Gift
by Guest Author
Sometimes the desire to avoid setting boundaries is a control strategy based on our own discomfort with conflict. When we blast through the assumption that being a good parent means avoiding conflict, we gift our children the ability to know who they are, what they want, and how to ask for it - something that was not always safe or allowed for our child-selves.
Mindful Moments Blog
Sesame Street Speaks Up Against Racism
by Ashley Patek
Sesame Street leads the pack on educating children about inclusion, social issues, and kindness, and now, with their newest special, “The Power of We,” they will teach children how to stand up against racism.
Mindful Moments Blog
As A Parent, I Miss Feeling Seen - How To Cope With The Loneliness Of Parenthood
by Rebecca Eanes
Without a village, parenthood can feel pretty isolating and lonely. Not being seen and connected often feels like a threat to our emotional and psychological well-being. Emotions Researcher Brené Brown inspires an unusual way out of loneliness and into self-acceptance.
Mindful Moments Blog
Nurturing Our Adult Relationships By Repairing Our Childhood Ones
by Ashley Martin
Parenting is like a perpetual garden of personal growth, where the seeds of learning and development continue to flourish without end. Our parenting and family dynamic plays a major role in the future of our children.
Mindful Moments Blog
3 Simple New Year’s Intentions for a Stronger Relationship with Your Child
by Rebecca Eanes
Practice these three intentions in the new year to rebuild or strengthen your parent-child bond and enjoy the fruits of a healthy relationship.
Mindful Moments Blog
This Numbed Out World Needs Sensitive People Like You
by Suzanne Tucker
By: Suzanne Tucker
Have you ever worried that your feelings are too big or "too much" to be acknowledged... much less shared out loud with another human being?
Today I'm sharing a personal story and a practice I use for sharing my emotions despite this fear so many of us adopted in childhood that our feelings are not valid and thus, not worthy of being shared.
I call BS.
The truth is that our feelings are data. They are not "right" or "wrong" so much as they are information -- a glimpse into our inner world.
So many of us grew up having emotions like sadness, grief, confusion, jealousy, and rage dismissed or denied by often well-intended but misguided adults who were never taught how to listen to, empathize with, and/or regulate emotions themselves.
Like the majority of adults on the planet, the friend I wanted to share my emotions with was raised in a family system that believed emotions were:
weak
not valid in and of themselves
and thus, NOT safe to feel
In this video, I share my experience of having my adult friend dismiss and deny my emotions when I shared my feelings, and how I responded.
In the above 12-minute video, I walk you through:
A short centering exercise (1-3:00 min)
My experience of being dismissed (3-4 min)
How this tied to my childhood (5-6 min)
Feelings as sacred (6-6:45 min)
How I "permitted" myself to feel (6:45 min)
A mantra to help us hold space for our kids (8:45 min)
We can learn to acknowledge ourselves and validate our own emotions. And, in modeling these things, we can teach others how to affirm and validate emotions as well --- making it safe for the next generation and for ourselves to feel.
JOIN THE REPARENT YOURSELF MEMBERSHIP
We don't control the people in our lives or how they react to our sharing --- but we DO control our thoughts, words, and actions.
I hope my experience helps you feel more confident in expressing your feelings regardless of how they will be met. Because this numbed-out world needs more sensitive people.
If you believe every child deserves to learn about their emotions, please check out our Reparent Yourself Membership, a community for change-makers like you, where we do not view the past as our destiny, but rather, our curriculum!
Join us!
About the author
Suzanne Tucker is the founder of Generation Mindful, a physical therapist, a parent educator of 30 years, and a mom of 4 (including twins!). Suzanne has been studying the art and the science of connection-based parenting for decades. Her life's work is to help families around the world find more joy and connection in their relationships.
Why Being a Sensitive Parent is a Good Thing
5 Ways To Nurture Emotional Intelligence For Kids
10 Simple Mindfulness Activities For Kids To Build Emotional Intelligence
Emotional Intelligence is More Than Naming Emotions
The Ultimate Guide To Building A Calming Corner And Using Time-Ins At Home
How do you say goodbye to time-outs and introduce time-ins? This is the ultimate guide on the do's and don'ts for building and using a Calming Corner.
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Mindful Moments Blog
Post-Pandemic Schools Need More Than Academics
by Traci Esposito
Post-pandemic children have a lot to adjust to. And there is no cookie-cutter response because the mental health of our children is not one-dimensional. There is a spectrum of feelings and emotional stress taking a seat in the classroom this year. Here are some tools for nurturing social-emotional learning (SEL).
Mindful Moments Blog
Behavior Charts for Kids: Do They Work?
by Traci Esposito
Behavior charts track behavior, but do they work in actually reforming it? Parents and educators can use this instead to nurture children's social-emotional skills and guide behaviors. Read more.
Mindful Moments Blog
Empowering Families: Trauma-Informed Coaching for Mindful Parenting
by Leselle Theus
Understand the principles of trauma-informed coaching and its role in promoting effective communication and client well-being.
Mindful Moments Blog
What Not To Say To A Parent Who Just Lost A Child
by Ashley Patek
October is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month. As a mother who has experienced this type of loss, I share my experience with fellow parents and offer gentle advise to supportive friends and family.
Mindful Moments Blog
How My Five-Year-Old Taught Me Empathy
by Selina Armstrong
This year, as parents we have had to level up our game as we navigate a global pandemic, racial injustices being brought to the forefront, civil unrest and so much more. At any one given moment, it’s hard to know whether I am thriving or just getting by. My daughter’s kindness came on a day where I was just skating by.
Mindful Moments Blog
Building Strong Foundations: Insight from an Early Childhood Professional
by Ashley Martin
Rosemarie Lawton is the Director of Professional Development at The Child Care Council of Orange County and longtime GENM advocate. Her company works diligently with families and childcare providers, with their primary purpose being to coordinate, assist, strengthen, and expand child care in Orange County for all children.
Mindful Moments Blog
A Positive Classroom Environment Helps Kids Succeed In School and Life
by Alex Petrou
Students who have stronger relationships with their teachers invest more time in academics, earn better grades, report being more satisfied, and behave in more prosocial ways as they transition from childhood into adolescence.
Mindful Moments Blog
Bringing The Shadows To Light: Reparenting Yourself In Motherhood
by Ashley Patek
One mama went into the shadows of her youth to heal the wounds of emotional neglect. And in doing so, she reparented herself, and transformed the connection with her daughter.
Mindful Moments Blog
The Most Precious Gift We Have Is The Accumulation Of Seconds With Our Children
by Ashley Patek
“Mommy, will you lay with me?” The back of my son’s jammie shirt lay slightly spotted as it caught my silent tears. The most precious gift we have is the accumulation of seconds with our children. And this is what they need us to know.
Mindful Moments Blog
I'm Too Stressed To Handle My Child's Meltdowns
by Suzanne Tucker
My own emotional capacity is on E, and it makes it super hard to be emotionally available for my child during his big emotions. What do I do?
Mindful Moments Blog
How To Heal Your Inner Child While Raising One
by Guest Author
Often, when punitive measures were used to reform our behaviors as children, it can be a challenge to step outside controlling, demanding, and commanding our kids, especially in the face of big emotions and misbehavior. So, how do we heal the child within while raising children? Here are 3 tools.
Mindful Moments Blog
What Two Young Boys Taught Their Grandma About Anger
by Alex Petrou
I gave SnuggleBuddies to my grandsons while they were visiting for Christmas to help them learn about feelings, but what happened next surprised me.
You see, that Christmas morning, we had a situation, one that caused my dog to get very, very sick. My dog had gotten into some chocolate candy.
My grandson tried to comfort our dog with the things that comfort them. Hank the elf, their SnuggleBuddies Red Bear and Orange Fox, blankets, and a balloon.
When I found out that my husband had left the chocolates out where the dog got into them, I was furious.
Having to deal with a sick puppy is bad enough, but to make matters worse, I have a rare neuromuscular condition (Myasthenia Gravis) that greatly affects my activity and breathing, and extra activity lands me in bed and on my noninvasive ventilator.
I knew from past experience that a dog eating chocolate results in a very ill pooch with lots of cleaning up and a special diet.
I wanted to enjoy our visit with the kids and the holidays...but I was angry.
I knew my husband did not intend for this to happen, and I did not want to be in a bad mood for the evening while my family was visiting. But I was!
That was when my daughter suggested the boys ask NayNay (me) if she wanted to “do her feelings”.
They were excited about that and ran to get their SnuggleBuddies to share with me.
Everyone listened and supported me as I went through my feelings.
I began to feel better, and it dawned on me that I was actually setting an example for my grandsons.
I also realized that had my grandsons and their SnuggleBuddies not been there, I wouldn't have talked about or worked through my angry feelings that quickly.
I just love those things; they are so cuddly! I ordered myself a Red Bear. And don't tell, but Red Bear has already helped my husband with some of his feelings too.
As a grandma, I love Generation Mindful. It makes me feel like I can really add to my grandson's lives in a lasting way. They live 15 hours away, so I don’t see them in person often. But it is so important to me that they know I SEE THEM!!!
Sometimes my grandsons call/facetime me to tell me their sad or mad feelings...and I think, I can do this! I can be there for them.
Despite any amount of distance or disability, I can listen.
_____________
Generation Mindful creates tools, toys, and programs that nurture emotional intelligence through play and positive discipline. Join us and receive joy in your inbox each week.
