Eps 74: Talking to Melissa Brown About Blended Families

Today’s guest is Melissa Brown, a blended family podcaster who works with stepfamilies. We are going to talk about blended families and the challenges they face. Join us!
 “Raising children is the biggest rollercoaster ride of your life.”
What you’ll hear in this episode: 

The biggest challenge facing blended families today

Dealing with drama while protecting kids from triangulation

The value of a child-centered approach when navigating difficult relationships with exes

The importance of self-awareness, love and patience in creating a positive environment for kids.

How to use problem solving tools you use with your kids with your exes to improve relationships

Learning to identify what you can’t control and how to deal with that

The mixed blessing and additional pressure of sibling rivalry on blended families and how to handle it

How to empower your kids for conflict resolution in blended families and learning to stay out of it, resisting the temptation to “fix” things

Protecting your relationship from blended family drama

Bonding with step kids – particularly teenagers – keeping an open mind.

Finding an entry point for building connection

Flexibility and scheduling in blended families

Routines and rituals – creating a sense of belonging

Consistency between houses, managing energy and big feelings.

Leveraging patterns in your blended family – approaching problems with curiosity

Dealing with (and expecting) setbacks and recovering when things don’t go as planned

 
What does Joyful Courage mean to you?
 
It takes a lot of courage to blend a family – it’s not always an easy journey. Joyful courage to me means understanding the importance of finding joy even through the pain in life. Our biggest growth and our biggest lessons always come from hard times.
 
Where to find Melissa:
Blended family podcast l Facebook l Twitter
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today’s guest is Melissa Brown, a blended family podcaster who works with stepfamilies. We are going to talk about blended families and the challenges they face. Join us!

 “Raising children is the biggest rollercoaster ride of your life.”

What you’ll hear in this episode: 

The biggest challenge facing blended families today
Dealing with drama while protecting kids from triangulation
The value of a child-centered approach when navigating difficult relationships with exes
The importance of self-awareness, love and patience in creating a positive environment for kids.
How to use problem solving tools you use with your kids with your exes to improve relationships
Learning to identify what you can’t control and how to deal with that
The mixed blessing and additional pressure of sibling rivalry on blended families and how to handle it
How to empower your kids for conflict resolution in blended families and learning to stay out of it, resisting the temptation to “fix” things
Protecting your relationship from blended family drama
Bonding with step kids – particularly teenagers – keeping an open mind.
Finding an entry point for building connection
Flexibility and scheduling in blended families
Routines and rituals – creating a sense of belonging
Consistency between houses, managing energy and big feelings.
Leveraging patterns in your blended family – approaching problems with curiosity
Dealing with (and expecting) setbacks and recovering when things don’t go as planned

 

What does Joyful Courage mean to you?

 

It takes a lot of courage to blend a family – it’s not always an easy journey. Joyful courage to me means understanding the importance of finding joy even through the pain in life. Our biggest growth and our biggest lessons always come from hard times.

 

Where to find Melissa:

Blended family podcast l Facebook l Twitter

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices