If you find yourself asking “why is my child so easily distracted?” and wondering how you can help – you’re not alone. All parents at one time or another wonder about their child when you find them doing something totally different when you know that they know they’re supposed to be doing something else. It can be frustrating and a source of conflict when it happens frequently.

More often than not the culprit is sensory overload.

The truth behind meltdowns is that we cannot avoid them. Why? We all have plans, including our children. We all react to when plans don’t go our way. However, the younger the child, the less established their cognitive development, their nervous system is immature, and they either not yet learned coping and regulation strategies or have not had enough practice to put them into play during times of need. It’s important for parents to recognize what psychological events that happen when our children have a meltdown, so that we can show up for them more empathetically, and geared with some tools to help both in the moment and afterwards.

It’s that time of year: daylight savings time is near! How to prep for infants and toddlers, and how does the time change affect older kids who don’t necessarily need the same prep as younger kiddos?

There has been alot of questions about if we should talk to our kids about the upcoming election, and if so, how do it in a developmentally appropriate way that doesn’t highlight the particular candidates and their beliefs. The answer is yes! We should definitely be speaking to our kids and here are some reasons why!

Ever notice how one family member can feel stressed, anxious, or fearful and it’s as though the feelings were contagious, and other family members start to feel the same sort of emotion and dysregulation? Those are mirror neurons at work. Our feelings and moods are in some ways contagious! And children are just as susceptible to feeling parents or caregivers emotions and moods, as parents are susceptible to feeling our child’s dysregulation. So it’s important we stake steps to regulate our emotions and teach our children to do the same.