by Cecilia Hilkey | parenting, tantrums, tools
Once when our kids were young, I found myself sitting on the grass in front of a grocery store while one of them had a full-on meltdown. If you have a child with big feelings or explosive emotions, you know the feeling. Here’s what happened… The kids wanted to go in...read more
by Cecilia Hilkey | parenting, tantrums, tools
Parenting can often feel overwhelming, especially when our children experience intense emotions. To effectively support them, we must first process our own feelings. This guide offers practical journal prompts that you can use after a meltdown or before the next one,...read more
by Cecilia Hilkey | compassion, parenting, tantrums
When my child struggles, misbehaves or acts out, I can sometimes get into the trap of blaming myself. I’m guessing that you can relate to this too. I know I’m not alone in this because in my work with parents, self-judgment and blame are a pretty common pattern....read more
by Cecilia Hilkey | conflict, parenting, tantrums, teens
No parent wakes up in the morning and thinks, “I can't wait to yell at my kids today.” And yet, so many of us find ourselves doing exactly that …sometimes before we even realize our mouths are open. If you've ever stood in your kitchen, mid-tirade, and...read more
by Cecilia Hilkey | parenting, tantrums
I’m going to talk about something that I’ve never talked about publicly before… a time when I had a meltdown. And I’ve got a 5-sentence mini-script that you can say whenever you are about to lose it. Seriously, it’s gold! First the story, I rarely talk about, when I...read more
by Cecilia Hilkey | parenting, tantrums
I want you to meet Dr. Christopher Willard. He’s a psychologist, author of 5 books including Growing Up Mindful and Raising Resilience, father of 2 kids, meditator, and teacher at Harvard Medical School (he’s no slouch!). Chris shares about meltdowns and the brain:...read more