Parenting Without Power Struggles
Raising Joyful, Resilient Kids While Staying Cool, Calm and Collected
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1.0 • 1 Rating
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- $20.99
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- $20.99
Publisher Description
Every parent knows the unrelenting fervour of a four-year-old's tantrum, an eight-year-old's insistence on talking back, or a moody pre-teen's newfound hobby of brooding in anger. And every parent has asked the simple question: how can I avoid meltdowns and create more peace at home?
While most parenting strategies are designed to coerce your kids to change, Parenting Without Power Struggles does something innovative, and focuses on where parents actually have real control: within themselves. When parents learn to keep their cool and parent from a strong and durable connection, they become able to help their children navigate the challenging moments of growing up.
Family therapist Susan Stiffelman has shown thousands of parents how to be the confident 'captain of the ship' in their children's lives. Based on her successful practice and packed with real-life stories, Susan shares proven strategies and clear insights to motivate kids to cooperate and connect, making Parenting Without PowerStruggles an extraordinary guidebook for transforming your day-to-day parenting life.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Stiffelman, a Malibu, Calif., licensed psychotherapist and AOL's parenting expert, explains that kids do best when parents function much like the captain of a ship: "in charge" rather than "in control." Instead of battling with kids over homework, chores, and other issues, Stiffelman encourages parents to "come alongside" rather than "at" their children, thus avoiding the instinctive and natural tendency for kids to push back when they meet resistance. The author presents a simple model for understanding the family structure: when the parent is in charge, kids rest assured that the family ship will float smoothly, but in a scenario she calls "two lawyers," parent and child struggle against one another, with no one in charge. Last is "child in charge," in which parents find themselves issuing meaningless threats. Conversational and practical, the author addresses how to create an "unshakable connection" with children, how to help kids have healthy relationships, how to deal with frustration, anger, whining, meltdowns, and other issues, and how to help kids fulfill their creative potential. She explains the importance of connection, noting that children who feel securely attached to their parents are less likely to engage in risky behavior when they become teens, and are more likely to be cooperative. Stiffelman's engaging work gives parents tools to navigate confidently in both calm and stormy family seas.
