Less Drama More Mama

Most of the moms I work with know how they want to parent differently.

They’ve read books, gone to therapy, or tried coaching. They can tell you exactly how they wish they’d handled the shoe standoff or the bedtime battle.

And they still yell.

Knowing what to do lives in the thinking brain, but reacting starts in the body, often before the thinking brain has a chance to weigh in.

I’m away at a somatic retreat this week, so I’m replaying the episode where I first talked about this on the show. With the holidays coming, it felt like the right time to revisit it.

If you’ve been wondering why you keep reacting when you know better, this episode will help it make sense.

For full show notes and information, visit https://lessdramamoremama.com/431

The post You Know Better. So Why Do You Still Yell at Your Kids? – 431 appeared first on Less Drama More Mama.

For the past few years, I've taught nervous system tools to moms from my quiet home office.

This fall, I put them to the test when I spent three months back at the school where I used to work as a counselor.

I didn't handle every moment perfectly, but I could feel how much more capacity I had to stay calm and respond thoughtfully than I did the last time I worked there, five years ago.

In this week's podcast episode, I share what I noticed, what helped, and why the experience made me even more certain about working with moms to teach them nervous system tools.

Your kids learn how to regulate partly by watching you do it. When you have tools to calm your own nervous system, you can model and teach the skills they need most.

For full show notes and information, visit https://lessdramamoremama.com/430

The post What Going Back to School Taught Me About Kids and Parenting – 430 appeared first on Less Drama More Mama.

“Keep your hands to yourself.”

You’ve probably said it more times than you can count, and your child can likely repeat the rule right back to you.

So why do they still push, grab, and hit?

Knowing the expectation and following it in the moment are two very different skills.

This is the final episode in my three-part series on self-control. I’m talking about physical self-control, which includes helping kids keep their hands off other people and their things, respect personal space, stay in control of their bodies when feelings get big, and understand consent.

You’ll hear how to practice these skills at home, what to do when your child is hitting or pushing, what this looks like with tweens and teens, and how your own history shapes the way you react when your kids get physical.

This episode is packed with real stories and strategies you can start using this week.

For full show notes and information, visit https://lessdramamoremama.com/429

The post How to Help Kids Keep Their Hands to Themselves (Self-Control Series, Part 3) – 429 appeared first on Less Drama More Mama.

You’ve told your child not to interrupt.

You’ve explained why their comment was rude.

You’ve reminded them to mind their own business.

Then they interrupt again or make another comment that would have been better left unsaid, and you wonder how many reminders it'll take before something changes.

In this week’s podcast episode, I’m talking about what makes verbal self-control so difficult and how you can help your child develop it.

For full show notes and information, visit https://lessdramamoremama.com/428

The post How to Help Kids Think Before They Speak (Self-Control Series, Part 2) – 428 appeared first on Less Drama More Mama.

Self-control is one of the hardest skills for kids to learn, and one of the most important.

It’s what helps them wait their turn, keep working when something feels hard, and handle frustration without falling apart or giving up.

Today kicks off a three-part series on the podcast about helping kids develop self-control.

In today's episode, I share how you can help your child build emotional self-control.

In the coming weeks, I’ll focus on verbal and physical self-control.

For full show notes and information, visit https://lessdramamoremama.com/427

The post Are You Making Self-Control Harder for Your Child? (Self-Control Series, Part 1) – 427 appeared first on Less Drama More Mama.

Do you wish you had more friends, but find yourself hesitating to reach out?

You might think you don’t have the time or that making friends takes too much effort.

You might assume other moms already have plenty of friends, are too busy, or wouldn’t be interested.

Those thoughts can make it harder to take the first step and get to know someone.

This week, I’m replaying an older episode about making new friends where I talk about common thoughts that can get in the way and how to create more opportunities for connection.

For full show notes and information, visit https://lessdramamoremama.com/426

The post Making New Friends as a Mom – 426 appeared first on Less Drama More Mama.

Your child talks back, lies about something small, or ignores your directions.

You wonder: If this is happening now, what will they be like five years from now?

In this week’s episode, I’m talking about why worry about your child’s future can make their current behavior feel so urgent, how that worry shapes your reactions, and how to respond to what’s actually happening.

For full show notes and information, visit https://lessdramamoremama.com/425

The post When Worry About Your Child’s Future Shapes Your Parenting – 425 appeared first on Less Drama More Mama.

Your child is yelling because you said no, talking to you disrespectfully, or following you around trying to change an answer you’ve already given.

You’re trying to stay calm, but part of you is thinking, How much of this am I supposed to put up with?

"Expanding your window of tolerance" can sound like learning to become more patient with behavior you don’t want to allow.

So what are you actually learning to tolerate?

Tune in to today’s episode to find out.

For full show notes and information, visit https://lessdramamoremama.com/424

The post Calm Parenting Doesn’t Mean Tolerating Bad Behavior – 424 appeared first on Less Drama More Mama.

“Why am I always so tired?”

“Why are my kids so disrespectful?”

“Why is parenting so hard?”

These can sound like self-reflection questions, but the assumptions built into them can keep leading you back to the same answers.

This week, I’m bringing back one of the earliest episodes of the podcast because its central idea still holds true:

The questions you ask shape what you notice and the answers you find.

In this episode, I explain how to recognize questions that leave you feeling defeated and replace them with questions that help you understand yourself, consider new possibilities, and decide what you want to do next.

For full show notes and information, visit https://lessdramamoremama.com/423

The post Self-Reflection Questions for Moms – 423 appeared first on Less Drama More Mama.

Your child’s teacher says they had a great day, but once they get home, the smallest thing sends them over the edge. After-school meltdowns can make it seem as though your child saved their worst behavior for you, but there may be more contributing to the reaction.

In this episode, I’m looking at the demands your child manages at school, the transition home, and what happens during the afternoon. I’m also sharing how to stay grounded when your child is overwhelmed, hold boundaries without arguing, and recognize when the pattern deserves more attention.

For full show notes and information, visit https://lessdramamoremama.com/422

The post After-School Meltdowns: How to Help Your Kids Without Having One Too – 422 appeared first on Less Drama More Mama.