Being at Your Best When Your Kids Are at Their Worst Practical Compassion in Parenting

When it comes to difficult and challenging situations with our kids, every parent wants to react in a way that reflects their family values and expectations. And yet, when our children "push our buttons," we find ourselves reacting in ways that are far from our principles, often further inflaming a situation. We feel ourselves falling into predictable relationship patterns, accompanied by a sinking feeling of, "Here we go again."

When our children are at their worst, they need us to be at our best--or as close to it as we can be. But how can we move from a "stress regress" to speaking in a voice that is warm, calm, and firm? Educator Kim John Payne offers techniques that simply and very directly shift these damaging patterns of communication and parental behavior. Grounded and practical, he teaches these strategies to parents around the world:
Slow down the interactionBe more in control of your reactionsSense what your child's deeper needs are even though they are misbehavingRespond in a way that gives your child a feeling of being heard and yet puts a boundary in place
Being at Your Best When Your Kids Are at Their Worst is a technique that you can use in the moment to reframe the situation and help you respond effectively, appropriately, and with kindness.