Have you ever experienced behavior from your child that doesn't make any sense? Yeah, neither have we...but for everyone ELSE out there who has experienced perplexing behavior or tried to figure out why the same 'willfully disobedient' actions keep on happening - this episode is for you. 

An immense amount of research has been published showing the connection between the body, the brain and behavior. Luckily for us, we've got Amanda Purvis from TCU's Karyn Purvis Institute of Child Development (KPICD) here to explain those connections and to help us explore what could actually be happening in situations where kids seem bent on disobedience. Amanda walks us through some very practical ways to see the connections between nutrition, hydration and our other senses and behaviors. We explore what it means to have a sensory profile and what that could mean for interactions between you and your kiddo. 

For more on the brain, body and behavior connection and to read about hundreds of practical tips on a complete sensory diet for your kids, check out the book Amanda recommended in the interview: The Out of Sync Child by Carol Kranowitz

To learn more about Empowered to Connect or to find more of ETC's resources, check us out on our website or follow us on Facebook or Instagram!

Dr. Michele Borba is an Educational Psychologist who has spent the last 4 decades studying resilience. In her latest book, "Thrivers", she shares the results of compiling years of resilience research from across the globe - resilience is built, not born. In the midst of so much stress, uncertainty and unplanned disruption to our everyday lives, we couldn't think of a better time to have Michele on to talk to us about building resilient kids. 

We discuss the fascinating research from different people groups, historical time periods and geographical locations that led her to this discovery and what happened when she sat down to work with Navy SEALS that blew her mind. 

She was generous enough to share lots of resources with us - before downloading these resources, be sure to buy Michele's book!

- To download the Parent Guide to Thrivers, click here!

- To download the child Character Strengths Assessment, click here and

- To download the 7 Essential Character Traits of Thrivers pdf, click here!

- To learn more about Empowered to Connect or to find more of ETC's resources, check us out on our website or follow us on Facebook or Instagram!

Are you struggling with challenging behaviors from your kiddos? The late Dr. Karyn Purvis developed the 'IDEAL Response' as an acronym to help parents remember how to connect with your kids while correcting inappropriate behavior.

In today's episode, Mo and Tona Ottinger join JD to take a deeper dive into the IDEAL Response and break down each component of the principle. The episode starts with audio from Dr. Purvis teaching the content - the original video she teaches in, as well as lots more connected parenting video content can be found on our YouTube channel here.

Learn what it means to be: Immediate, Direct, Efficient, Action-Based and Leveled at the Behavior with content from Dr. Karyn Purvis and analysis from JD and The Ottingers!

In the show, we mention the potential need for families/individuals dealing with level 4 behavior consistently to walk through deescalation training of some kind - to begin familiarizing yourself with that level of training, check out these resources below: 

https://www.crisisprevention.com/Our-Programs

https://handlewithcare.com/who-we-train/parents/

To learn more about Empowered to Connect or to find more of ETC's resources, check us out at Empoweredtoconnect.org or follow us on Facebook or Instagram!

If you attended Show Hope's 'Hope for the Journey' Conference, you were introduced to Dan and Terri Coley. Longtime friends of Empowered to Connect, Dan and Terri have built a legacy of parenting wisdom and mentorship in the connected parenting world. Episode 5 of the ETC Podcast featured Dan, Mo Ottinger and our host, JD Wilson talking about the power of being present and it still today is one of our most listened to episodes ever. 

We thought it would be fitting today to throw back to that episode - if you've not yet listened, we're so excited for you to do so! Dan, Mo and JD discuss why it's often so difficult for dads to be present and their own stories of doing the heart work necessary to be able to really engage the hearts of the people they love.

Please enjoy this conversation with one of our favorite humans on earth, Dan Coley.

To learn more about Empowered to Connect or to find more of ETC's resources, check us out at Empoweredtoconnect.org or follow us on Facebook or Instagram!

That's right, it's a BONUS EPISODE of the ETC Podcast today! In light of Show Hope's Hope For the Journey Conference going live today, we at ETC wanted to share some stories of hope. Everyone on this connected parenting journey was inspired to begin parenting this way at some point - and at some point shortly after starting, probably failed miserably. That's the story at least for the 5 families who came together to discuss their connection based parenting journeys on the show today. Join our host JD Wilson and his wife Elizabeth, Mo and Tona Ottinger from ETC, Matthew and Anteelah Love, Chris and Paula Powell as well as Matt and Grace Terhune as they discuss how it started and how it's going.

If your parenting soul is struggling today and could use some stories of solidarity in the struggle, this episode is for you!

To learn more about ETC, check out empoweredtoconnect.org and follow us on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube!

As the team from Show Hope makes their final preparations for the Hope for the Journey Conference Streaming this Friday (April 9th, 2021), we sat down with Show Hope's Executive Director, Emily Chapman Richards! We first heard about Emily as the 10 year old adoption advocate in the back of her parents' car. We learn today what happened in the rest of the story as Emily went on to become the Executive Director of an organization advocating for and assisting in the care of vulnerable children literally around the world. Emily is a great interview and you'll want to hear her talk about everything from those early moments through the exciting work that Show Hope is doing now as well as an inside peek at the Hope for the Journey Conference!

If you've not yet registered for the Hope for the Journey Conference you can do so at showhope.org!

To learn more about ETC, check out empoweredtoconnect.org and follow us on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube!

It happens to the best of us - we have everything laid out the way it's supposed to go and it completely falls apart. The family vacation ends in disaster, the Target run ends with someone on the floor melting down, we sit at night and wonder how we were so wrong about what life would look like by now. Expectations - we all have them and when they're unrealistic or misguided in their formation, they can be detrimental. There's good news, though! By recognizing and identifying expectations we've had, we can begin to evaluate them and reset appropriate expectations - and maybe most importantly, begin to teach our kids the same skills. We cover all of this and more today as we unpack another foundational piece of one of our connecting practices: Setting Appropriate Expectations.

To learn more about ETC, check out empoweredtoconnect.org and follow us on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube!

As anyone with Netflix has seen in the last week or two, there's a famous ETC Principle in the newest Jennifer Garner movie - The Yes Day. No, ETC didn't make a movie, but there is lots to learn from the movie! JD, Tona and Mo sit down to talk about one of the most foundational principles in the ETC world - the power of saying yes. 

"Isn't that just permissive parenting!?" "If you give these kids an inch, they're ALWAYS going to take a mile." "We aren't trying to spoil our kids." All very common responses to the principle of giving our kids 'yes' often. Yet research and experience from 15 years of ETC Parent Training will tell you otherwise. Join JD, Mo and Tona and learn why 'Yes' is a superpower in your parenting arsenal!

During the interview we reference several different resources on this topic - below we've linked those articles as well as some other resources from ETC on the Power of YES: 

https://empoweredtoconnect.org/the-privilege-of-saying-yes/
https://empoweredtoconnect.org/building-trust-by-saying-yes/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4SF6GmV7zg0
https://www.mindful.org/dr-dan-siegel-hearing-yes-childs-brain/

To learn more about ETC, check out empoweredtoconnect.org and follow us on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube!

We've all done it. We've lost our temper, checked out, popped off, said something we shouldn't have or didn't say something we should have in a moment of weakness. If you're like us, you've probably already had a moment (or several) moments like this today - it's ok. Take a deep breath and let Marriage and Family Therapist Carissa Woodwyk and ETC's Tona Ottinger walk you through how to repair when you've ruptured something with yourself, your partner or a kiddo. Special heads up - be sure to listen all the way to the end to hear Carissa's perspective on this as an adoptee when she shares an intimate moment of self discovery related to her own story - you don't want to miss it. 

To learn more about Carissa and her work, be sure to check out her first appearance on the show here or follow her on Instagram or Facebook!

To learn more about ETC, check out empoweredtoconnect.org and follow us on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube!

Our guest today is quite literally one of the most influential figures in the work we do at Empowered to Connect! Dr. Tina Payne Bryson is the Author of Bottom Line for Baby and 4 other co-authored books including two New York Times Bestselling works, The Whole Brain Child and No Drama Discipline. She is also the Founder and Executive Director of the Center for Connection and the Play Strong Institute.

Tina joins us to talk about what kids need most from their parents and how we can create the felt safety in our homes to allow our children to heal and grow as whole people. Tina is a fantastic teacher and she walks us through everything from navigating meltdowns to creating felt safety in relationship with teens. 

For more on Tina's work and her new parent group: Office Hours with Tina, click here!

To learn more about Empowered to Connect, visit us on our website, like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram and now find all of our episodes on our YouTube channel!