33. Parent & Caregiver Stress Through a Sensory Emotional Lens

During any big transition or change in routine for our children, we spend a lot of time talking about how to support our kids, and we, as parents and caregivers, put all our effort into this. We focus on understanding the tricky behaviors of our children and preventing and responding to them. What we don't spend time on is what supports us as caregivers during busy, tricky, crazy seasons in life. In fact, we often completely put our needs aside at times like these. Then what happens? You guessed it - WE are the ones with the tricky behaviors! In this episode, we examine parent and caregiver stress through a sensory-emotional lens and discuss ways to infuse emotionally informed sensory-motor experiences into our lives to support ourselves in tough moments.   In this episode, you'll discover: Your own tricky behaviors as a stress response in yourself Ways to embrace your tricky behaviors in a way that allows you to make changes to them, versus just moving through them as something to be expected or “it’s just what I do”  Sensory emotional strategies to address overwhelm, exhaustion, stress, and disorganization in yourself  Quick and easy ways to move your body in your day that will promote feelings of strength, resilience, control, connection, and organization in your life  For more information on Great Kids at Heart, our adult programs at Great Kids Place, please visit: https://greatkidsplace.com/great-kids-at-heart/ Join our community! Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thesensoryemotional_ot/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/greatkidsplace/  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GreatKidsPlace/ Want more resources? Please visit our blog: https://greatkidsplace.com/category/blog/ and https://sensoryemotional.org/   About Michele Parkins MS, OTR/L IMH-E® Founder & Director, Great Kids Place  Founder, Sensory Emotional Engagement Model™ Michele is an Occupational Therapist endorsed as an Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Specialist. She specializes in working with children and families with Sensory Processing and Integration Disorders and challenges in social-emotional development. She is also a parent of two sensory kids. She works and lives sensational kids! Michele is a fellow of Dr. Lucy Jane Miller, OTR.   Michele is passionate about working with families and other therapists and continues to do so as a clinician and educator. She educates therapists from all over the country and world and continues to provide consultation to schools on treatment for sensory processing disorder. Michele has co-authored a chapter in the 3rd edition of Sensory Integration: Theory and Practice, the textbook for sensory evaluation and treatment, alongside world-renowned pioneers in the field, and is currently writing a parenting book and children’s books.  She hopes to help everyone - children and adults- understand their Sensory Emotional Personality™ style and ways to find strength and joy within them.