Navigating Parenting and Emotional Regulation: Empowering Our Children Through Co-Regulation and Self-Care

As a parent, have you ever felt overwhelmed by your child's emotions and unsure of how to help them through it? You're not alone! I sat down with certified parent coach, Laura Reardon, to discuss the importance of providing a supportive environment for our children when they face big emotions like anxiety. Together, we explored emotional regulation, self-care, and co-regulation, all of which can create a sense of safety and empowerment for both you and your child.

In our conversation, we dove into the world of co-regulation and how it can help us recognize when our child's behavior is a result of dysregulation. We discussed the importance of involving our child in the problem-solving process and how this fosters cooperation, problem-solving skills, and confidence. We also touched on how understanding our nervous system and the development of our prefrontal cortex is key to emotional regulation. Laura shared invaluable insights on how to create safety for our children when they're feeling anxious and how to be compassionate when they need our support.

Lastly, we explored the importance of self-regulation in parenting and relationships, and how breath work can help us stay calm and present for our kids. Laura emphasized that co-regulation is essential in all relationships, as well as the importance of giving ourselves grace when parenting becomes challenging. Don't miss this empowering episode, where we uncover valuable insights and practical tips on navigating the ever-evolving world of parenting and emotional regulation.

QUOTES, LINKS & RESOURCES

"Emotional regulation is our ability to be with our emotions. The comfortable ones and the uncomfortable ones and to respond in ways that create calm, connection and conflict resolution." 
—Laura Reardon

"The reason emotional regulation is so challenging is because our nervous system unconsciously affects our behaviors."
—Laura Reardon

"Coregulation is recognizing dysregulation in our kids and responding in ways that help our child return to regulation." 
—Laura Reardon

"Emotions communicate important information to us about our needs."
—Laura Reardon

“The most elevated thing you can do as a parent and, in any relationship, is to recognize someone’s ‘misbehavior’ as dysregulation and instead of getting reactive  in response and escalating the storm, instead of responding with coregulation.”
—Laura Reardon

"As parents, one of the hardest things for us to understand is that it starts with us, it starts with our own regulation."
—Laura Reardon

"Parenting is not about perfection Parenting is about growing into our best selves as we hold our children’s hands as they grow into their best selves."
—Laura Reardon

Laura’s Book list 

Brain Body Parenting by Mona Delahooke

Zero Days by Ruth Ware 

👉Get your FREE copy of Laura's ABC's of Calm Cheat Sheet

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