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,Parenting is one of the most challenging and humbling things I’ve ever done. I’ve met hundreds of parents over the years who agree. This blog aims to bring you cutting edge advice about how to meet those challenges with confidence and grace. We will bring together time-tested behavioral approaches to raising happy, confident children with newly emerging information about mind-body interventions, such as meditation, mindfulness, and yoga. Our goal is to learn to tune into our own feelings, teach our children to do the same and provide the structured, consistent environment that they need.
Here are some posts that I think may be helpful to you: 1. Getting to a virtuous, rather than negative cycle 2. Using a gratitude practice to move toward more positive parenting 3. ABCs of emotional and behavioral regulation 4. Creating reasonable expectations for ourselves and our children 5. Choosing battles and letting go 6. Communicating feelings — more than words How did I find this path? When my daughter was young, I enrolled her in a school that would take her from preschool through high school. Perfect, I thought — no more worries until college. Then we moved, clear across the country. Suddenly, I was looking for a new school and home while I re-invented myself professionally, in a city where I knew no one. In that moment I realized that nothing was permanent and that, if I remained open to — or even embraced — change, I was likely to learn, grow and succeed in ways that were previously unimaginable. That growth, however, did not always come easily. Like many of you, I searched for tools to manage stress, stay healthy and strong. Long distance running provided a release, but over time. took a toll on my joints. Yoga, however, provides both a reset button and healing at times, especially when I manage to literally tie my body up with stress. The use of meditation, and especially mindfulness, has also been powerful in my life. While I still struggle to sit still for any lengthy formal meditation practice, the teachings of gratitude, patience (especially with myself) and compassion have become part and parcel of my daily self talk, be it sitting in traffic, working with teams, getting through my own to do list, etc. This blog, then, is my way of bringing together these physical and mindfulness practices with my expertise in psychology and child development, and share them with you. Building expertise, one step at a time Over the past 20 years I have worked as a psychologist for schools, hospitals, community agencies, in private practice and other settings, helping families understand and address their children’s challenges. My journey has also included training parents and other professionals, both in the US and abroad. I took my first yoga class at 16, when my mother insisted that I take something at the local recreation center. While I wasn’t especially enthusiastic about it at the time, years later, I still knew some of the poses and sequences when I returned to yoga as a young parent. Initially working from books and videos, I more recently completed a 200-hour yoga teacher training, other workshops (including one with Ana Forrest) and make it to the studio for class as often as I can. Along the way, and especially when I was balancing a more than full-time job with more than full-time parenting, I also turned to meditation and mindfulness training. I was skeptical at first, but the practices grew on me, slowly infiltrated my thinking and even my body — teaching me to slow my breath, find the “pause button” and shift from anxious reaction to a more thoughtful response. Hoping to learn more? Click below to receive the latest tips, strategies and "how to's on becoming a Humble Warrior Parent. And follow me on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest for daily inspiration and news. |
Melanie Johnson Ph.D. Licensed Psychologist CA Lic PSY 16704 415-454-9800