Category
Mental Health
We all know the black hole moments. The moments when your child is overwhelmed by emotion. It might be frustration, shame, disappointment or hurt or any other powerful feeling. It doesn’t only happen to little kids; our teens can be… Continue Reading →
83% of Australia’s population live within 50 kms of the ocean. We spend our time looking out towards the water, not inward at the land. Why? Well there is something primordial about water. We are drawn to it and it… Continue Reading →
Mindfulness is the process of consciously listening to your own thoughts and being aware of which ones are useful and which ones aren’t. It’s part of ‘metacognition’ in science speak. The most important part of this brain management is that… Continue Reading →
I could feel the heat rushing from the depths of my chest up into my neck and then into my face. My Science teacher’s face was contorted with rage. The whole class was silent. Shocked. But all I heard was… Continue Reading →
Today at school, I asked a usually vivacious 16-year old girl if she was alright. She was looking a bit clammy and fragile so we went and had a quiet chat. Zoe is sitting exams and choosing subjects for her… Continue Reading →
I wish mindfulness had another name. I always cringe a bit when I write or talk about the importance of being ‘mindful’. This wasn’t helped today when our intern at work told me I was starting to sound like a… Continue Reading →
There is nothing worse than seeing a child in pain. Physical or emotional pain, it doesn’t matter. If we can’t help, we feel broken. That is our function, to protect and fix…but that’s not always possible. In 2016 I wrote… Continue Reading →
Inside: What is perfection paralysis and how can you help kids overcome it? It’s Sunday night, bedtime. Your daughter is upset about the assignment for English that is due the next day. She’s had a week to do it and… Continue Reading →
Kelly was in my Year 8 class. She was quiet, but not unusually so. A nice kid. One afternoon, it was screamingly hot, in the way only Perth in summer can be. She had her jumper on. I asked her… Continue Reading →
The fact that parents believe mobile phones are essential to keeping kids safe is testament to the power of marketing. If phone companies really were worried about the wellbeing of children, they would be heavily marketing cheap ‘dumb’ phones…phones that… Continue Reading →