Is it sensory or behavior? [free mini course]

You may have asked yourself at some point, “What is happening with my child and these behaviors?”

“Is there something ‘sensory’ going on?  Is it my parenting?  Do I just have a bad kid?”

The problem isn't you – you’re a good person.  And no, you don’t have a bad kid. 

If you’re like most parents that I work with, you love your child, you’re devoted to their progress, yet still you struggle.  In most cases, the tools you were taught are failing you (not the other way around).

This is exactly why I recorded a conversation with my friend and colleague, Stephanie Johnson, R-DMT, LPC who is a mother, educator, author of Baby Bare, registered dance therapist and licensed professional counselor.

Stephanie teaches us that kids’ communication is all about the body.  It's very rarely a cognitive choice for children to manipulate the situation or give us a hard time or be naughty.

She guides us through her “widening technique” to give us a sense of how we can use our adult bodies to communicate safety to children in the moments they need it most.

Watch our 30-min video below.

FREE MINI COURSE: When you experience Stephanie’s technique in the video, you might want more of her simple strategies that help you bond with your child and heal your relationship.

You get her mini course “Healing Movement for Your Child Who Struggles” + 1 group coaching call ($50 value) when you register for my October cohort of  Mad to Glad Blueprint.  No catch.  I’m covering the cost because her strategies go hand-in-hand with my parenting program. 

To redeem your $50 gift, sign up for Mad to Glad Blueprint here and enter coupon HEALING22 at checkout (expires 10/16/22).

When you sign up, you get a seat in my online parent training that starts October 18, and we’ll email you a link to redeem your $50 gift within 1-2 business days.  Register now!

I love how Stephanie shares that the language of the lower brain is movement, touch, body experiences, tone of voice, and environment.

We discuss these really important topics:

🥇What's happening in some children's bodies that causes them to be more intense? 

🥈Why is their body like this?  

🥉Will my child naturally grow out of this?  (The answer is no.)

    ⏩  Can specific movements heal this?  Yes.

When you learn to speak your child’s language it helps them feel calm, safe, and more organized (rather than dysregulated).

This conversation reminded me of my wonderful kindergarten teacher who captured the attention of a couple dozen small, wiggly bodies by getting softer and wider, not louder or harsher.  She knew how to communicate with our bodies!

If that teacher would have become “narrower,” as Stephanie demonstrated, she may have conducted a different, more stressful energy throughout the room, and us children would have mirrored it right back.  Especially the kiddos with tendencies of higher intensity.

I hope you find the “widening technique” useful.  It’s a way to communicate to your child’s lower brain so they feel safe and attended to, which is useful for calming households down

What a simple way to strengthen your child’s trust in you, heal old patterns, and enjoy being together.

With love,

Samantha