What We're Reading in September
September 2021: Raising Good Humans: A Mindful Guide to Breaking the Cycle of Reactive Parenting and Raising Kind, Confident Kids
by Hunter Clarke-Fields MSAE (Author), Carla Naumburg PhD (Foreword)
A kinder, more compassionate world starts with kind and compassionate kids. In Raising Good Humans, you’ll find powerful and practical strategies to break free from “reactive parenting” habits and raise kind, cooperative, and confident kids.
Whether you’re running late for school, trying to get your child to eat their vegetables, or dealing with an epic meltdown in the checkout line at a grocery store—being a parent is hard work! And, as parents, many of us react in times of stress without thinking—often by yelling. But what if, instead of always reacting on autopilot, you could respond thoughtfully in those moments, keep your cool, and get from A to B on time and in one piece?
With this book, you’ll find powerful mindfulness skills for calming your own stress response when difficult emotions arise. You’ll also discover strategies for cultivating respectful communication, effective conflict resolution, and reflective listening. In the process, you’ll learn to examine your own unhelpful patterns and ingrained reactions that reflect the generational habits shaped by your parents, so you can break the cycle and respond to your children in more skillful ways.
When children experience a parent reacting with kindness and patience, they learn to act with kindness as well—thereby altering generational patterns for a kinder, more compassionate future. With this essential guide, you’ll see how changing your own “autopilot reactions” can create a lasting positive impact, not just for your kids, but for generations to come.
Discussion Points:
This book is about breaking free from reactive parenting habits and raising kind, cooperative, and confident kids. What are some ways you have been a reactive parent in the past? What are some changes you can make in order to “break free” from reactive parenting?
What are some strategies for cultivating respectful communication?
The book talks about how to examine our own unhelpful patterns and generational habits shaped by your parents. Do you find it freeing to break unhealthy habits?
What are some “mindfulness skills” that you find helpful in your day to day life?
What are some examples of ways to respond thoughtfully in moments of stress and responding to children in a more skillful way?
One of the many goals of parenting is to create a lasting positive impact? Did you find this book helpful in doing so?