When parents in pain reach out to ADHD Parenting Coach Siope Kinikini, he gives them the following four things to do. When we are overwhelmed and unsure of what to do next, it is so helpful to have someone give us some concrete things to do that allow us to address the problems and find solutions that work for our family.
The four things are: slow down and identify fears, focus on what we can control, build the relationship, teach the behavior skills
Parenting from a place of fear isn’t productive. It’s easy to get caught up in our fears of what may happen that they drive all our reactions. Slowing down and identify the fears we have for our child allows us to attach behavior skills. Behavior skills give us a road map and help alleviate the unknowns and our responses to them. Sometimes we get so caught up in what is happening and our fears for what may happen.
Focus on what we can control as there is a lot in parenting we can’t control. We can’t always control how our child behaves or reacts. We can’t control how others will respond to our child’s behavior. What we can control is how we act. We can control our responses and our stress level. It also may mean changing expectations or routines to better work with what we can control.
Focus on the relationship instead of your child's negative behavior. While this may seem counter-intuitive to many parents who are struggling, what we focus on is what grows. If we only focus on their negative behavior, we actually may be making the behavior worse. Focusing on the relationship gives you a long-term focus. All skills of the Teaching-Family Model are focused on building and strengthening relationships. You can create connections by reminiscing on memories, spending time together, taking the time to listen, doing an activity they’d like to do, etc. Focusing on the relationship does not need to involve a lot of money or resources. A lot of progress can be made with simple one-on-one activities.
Teach the skills the way they should be taught. Just talking about the skills with our kids isn’t enough--we have to practice. Role-playing is a vital component in bringing about the change you want. If your child isn’t adapting a skill, increase your Role-play.
No matter what a parent is facing, this advice is relevant to parents of kids of all ages and all behavior problems.
If you are a parent in pain, join the Smarter Parenting Club. You can get specific answers to your family’s problems. Don’t put off healing your family. Sign-up today. https://club.smarterparenting.com/
To learn the behavior skills on Smarter Parenting visit: https://www.smarterparenting.com/lesson/
For more information about how Smarter Parenting uses the Teaching-Family Model, visit the episode podcast page on SmarterParenting.com
