Connection
It’s the HOLIDAYS!
22 March 2024 Hi everyone! Easter holidays are upon us – well done parents of South African children, term one done and dusted! In the words of Fat Amy… Acabelieve it! (And if you don’t get this reference then you have never watched Pitch Perfect. And that means you have some more movie-watching homework. Not…
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Rituals, ceremonies and rites of passage
The need for ritual and ceremony is universal. We have daily rituals; that first glorious cup of coffee in the morning, or the blanket we always sleep with. One helps us start the day and the other helps us finish it. Rituals mark time, bringing comfort or reassurance into each day. But they can also…
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From co-regulation to self-regulation: a journey in connection
Co-regulation is when a parent or caregiver uses their voice, facial expression and bodily posture to communicate love, acceptance and understanding to a child in a moment of need or when they are experiencing “big feelings”. Self-regulation is defined in the APA dictionary of psychology as n. the control of one’s behavior through the use…
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The bits between words
Children can tune out our words faster than we can say “Tidy your bedroom”, but they are invested in all of the bits between our words even when it doesn’t look like they are. Sometimes we don’t appreciate a person’s presence until they are not there. As we wind down to the end of this…
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Friendship: because parent sneed play dates too
Cultivating friendship in the adult years can be surprisingly tricky. But parents need play dates too. How many play dates have you made for your child in the past year? Probably not as many as in a usual year, granted. But I am willing to bet for most of us we’ve spent a good deal…
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Write them a note
A very simple top tip for increasing connection with your child; write them a note. Or draw them a picture. Hearing you say “I love you” is wonderful, having it written down to look at again and again is amazing. I remember very vividly on certain days when I was in primary school opening my…
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Dinner time convos
One of the things I most often advise parents to do more of, is simply spend more intentional time with their children. Often if a child is acting out in some way, their “love tank*” is empty and what they may be looking for is connection. Reassurance-seeking behaviour rather than attention-seeking behaviour as I talked…
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