When Your Child's Afraid with Nidhi M.

Nidhi has three kids under the age of 4, and they're all very close in age. The oldest has a feeding tube, and she's recently moved to her younger sister's bedroom. In a new room and a new bed, she regularly wakes up scared and runs to her parents' room screaming. Nidhi is looking for ways to let her daughter know that she's safe in her new room. Today, we talk about how Nidhi can help her daughter. I suggest a very loving conversation about her fears, and I talk about the importance of totally reassuring her that she's safe while also acknowledging and validating her fear. I suggest the use of a monitor or walkie-talkie, and I note that Nidhi should ask her daughter what she thinks about it. I talk about how Nidhi can normalize the difficulty of getting used to a new situation, and I stress the importance of using the word "safe" instead of just "okay". "The more you validate it, I think, the easier it's gonna be for her." - Sue Groner This week on The Parenting Mentor: The power of a loving conversation The importance of stressing safety Validating feelings and normalizing the experience of difficulty Meet the Parenting Mentor If you want to reduce the everyday stress and anxiety that inevitably come with parenting and learn to be a happier and more relaxed parent, then this is the place for you. Here, you can listen in on real sessions with parents who open up about the specific challenges they face with children from 2 to 22. Listen along and gain perspectives and strategies to help you parent with sanity and joy. Visit theparentingmentor.com for notes on this show, more episodes, and all the ways to subscribe, and don't forget to pick up my book, Parenting with Sanity and Joy: 101 Simple Strategies, which includes my Nine Golden Rules of Parenting. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave a review wherever you get your podcasts! Spotify I Stitcher I Apple Podcasts I iHeart Radio I TuneIn I Google Podcasts