Feelings
When Our Kids Feel Shame
He felt ashamed, like there was something wrong with this beautiful and celebrated part of himself. And what a horrible feeling that is! I know I can relate to feeling that way. Over the years I put away a lot of parts of myself when I had similar experiences. I want my son to know that his light does not have to be darkened by the opinions of others.
Read MoreOwn Your Sh*t
Grace here. Vulnerability alert! Parenting can be really hard sometimes. Yup. Even for me, who literally helped create a class all about it. You can know what to do in your brain, but if you want to actually implement it, you still have to do the work. Let me tell you a little story…
Read MoreWhat Else Could Be True Here?
Grace here. This is one of my all time favorite questions. I am going to have to get a little theoretical with you to tell you why, so bear with me for a minute when I get there. But first, a little story. I had an experience when I was about 16 that left…
Read MoreKeep Your Heart Open
NOTE: I wrote this blog post before the death of George Floyd and the resulting heightened awareness of the racial inequalities in our society. While the words of this blog speak specifically to the experience of the pandemic, I encourage you to think about how you are attending to your heart around all of it. …
Read MoreVulnerability Hangover
Patti here. Have you ever had that experience where you open up and share of yourself and then afterwards you feel, well, kind of emotionally hungover? Kristen Neff and Chris Germer of The Center for Mindful Self-Compassion call it backdraft (like what happens in a fire when you open a door). Grace calls it a…
Read MoreHow I Knew My Emotional Life Was Interfering with My Parenting
Patti here. I remember a long time ago when my eldest child was two years old. Newly potty trained, she felt confident of her skills. Unfortunately, I didn’t at all. On this beautiful fall day, we prepared to ride bikes across the city to our food co-op. I knew the ride would take us 25…
Read MoreSwimming in the Deep End
Patti here. Have you ever had the experience of suddening falling back into the feelings and sensations of an old trauma? Out of the blue your logical mind has trouble distinguishing the past from the present? Smells, visual cues, strange thoughts transport you back in time. You are actually in present time, but you feel,…
Read MoreThe Power of “And”
I recently had a client come to session talking about the power of the word “and”. I’ll be honest and say I’m not sure if those are her words or something I once said that resonated with her. And I don’t suppose it really matters except in my desire to give credit where credit is…
Read MoreKnowing When to Stop
Hello! Grace here. What do you do when you feel done but you also know you could push yourself and do more? How do you know where to draw the line and set the boundary? Many of us have beliefs about ourselves that tell us to push ourselves and always do more so how do…
Read MoreTrading Discomforts
I think most of us have the belief, or maybe the hope, that if we do the right thing everything will feel good. The reality is that while it tends to feel better in the long run, Right Action, at least at first, often means trading one discomfort for another.
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