This issue was published on December 19th, 2021 at NuggetsNewsletter.substack.com
One of my favorite accounts I follow on Instagram is Dr. Siggie. She’s a Child Development Specialist who has been working with families for over 3 decades.
A while ago she posted this:
A post shared by Siggie Cohen✨Parenting Expert (@dr.siggie)
As simple as it is, it’s helpful for me to remember when I am feeling overwhelmed.
I’ve found that journaling also helps me manage my stress/anxiety. I recently remembered I purchased this Anti-Anxiety journal last year. It’s a Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) notebook designed by therapists that has entries to help track of emotions, become more aware of thought patterns, and grow over time specifically to reduce anxiety and manage stress.
Here’s a sample page from their website:
If you want to learn more about the journal you can click here. (Not an affiliate link, just a great product I recommend to friends!)
Last week I came across this post from Curious Parenting:
A post shared by Curious Parenting (@curious.parenting)
Since I started to actively seek child development/caregiving resources over the past few years, one thing that continues to amaze me is how intertwined our own upbringing and psychology is with how we interact with and relate to the children in our lives.
Becoming more aware of being triggered by something a child does creates an opportunity to learn about ourselves as grownups in little one’s lives. I think the biggest gift we can give to children (and to ourselves) is to practice becoming more self aware and understanding ourselves so we can show up for them.
Next on my “to read” list is “Permission to Feel” by Marc Brackett, Ph.D. It’s about “unlocking the power of emotions to help our kids, ourselves, and our society thrive.” You can expect some sort of review or a few thoughts on it in this newsletter later next month. :)
I love learning more about the psychology behind parenting/caregiving and will definitely be sharing what I learn here. If you have any resources or recommendations, please share them!
I recently came across this video from Nedra Tawwab titled “This is how I protect my energy…”
Nedra Glover Tawwab, MSW, LCSW, is a New York Times best-selling author, licensed therapist, and sought-after relationship expert. She helps people create healthy relationships by teaching them to implement boundaries. Here’s a photo of Nedra from her Instagram:
A post shared by Nedra Glover Tawwab, Therapist (@nedratawwab)
She wrote the book “Set Boundaries, Find Peace” which I think is going to be my next recommendation for the book club I’m a part of.
In the video I mentioned, Nedra discusses not picking up the phone when you do not feel like talking or having a conversation, waking up a little early to ground yourself, letting go of the urge to be right, peacefully stepping away especially when you feel your energy is being drained, and a handful of other helpful ways one can protect their own energy.
I found another resource from Curious Parenting about “Unlearning Urgency” and I think practicing this might be helpful for parents, grownups, and caregivers.
A post shared by Curious Parenting (@curious.parenting)
Note to self: googling “self care” during the month of December means you will mostly find articles about what gifts to buy yourself and what to spend money on to treat yourself.
Self care is personal (pun somewhat intended). By that I mean what works for me, might not work for you. You also don’t have to buy something to take care of yourself.
So take this as your sign to take an extra long bath, go for a walk, watch too many episodes of that show you’ve been meaning to get back to, finally wash your hair, order your favorite dinner tonight or do whatever you do to take care of yourself.
After spending quite some time on this planet, we’ve gotten to know what makes us feel good and how to take care of ourselves, but our nuggets might not know or be aware of their favorite self care practices.
Introduce your little ones, or big ones, to the idea of an at-home spa day. When I was growing up, my mom was really into lotions and scrubs and she even had a foot wax thing that my brother and I were obsessed with. Seeing a wax mold of your foot was so cool at 10 (and still is at 24).
I remember setting up a “spa” in the living room on more than one occasion. Show your kids how great it feels to receive a hand massage and maybe they’ll return the favor — haha.
I’ve found a few articles to help introduce the idea of self care to your kids:
The first article written by Lorraine Murray from Mind Body Green shares 7 fun tips to teach children about mindfulness and meditation. One activity is to have your kid(s) choose a “breathing buddy” to hold onto while they breath in silence for one minute so they can notice how their buddy moves up and down while they take breaths. So creative!
The second article from the National Museum of African American History and Culture goes into more detail about what self care is and how helpful it is in our day-to-day lives. I love this quote:
“Self-care is not an “emergency response plan” to be activated when stress becomes overwhelming. Healthy self-care is an intentional way of living where your values, attitudes, and mindful actions become part of your daily routine.”
The writer also shares links to how to teach children about meditation and how to deal with stress from parenting.
Ever wonder what’s on a 10-month-old’s Christmas wishlist? (Hint: it may or may not include a laptop charger and dog food).
