Securely Attached

I was having a conversation with my practice co-founder Dr. Emily Upshur, just as two moms, navigating the transition with our own kids of working through unmasking at school and daycare. And it felt so important to get this message out there, as you are likely dealing with this exact same thing with your own children today, that we decided to hit record right on my iPhone. This episode is a little different - it's raw, unfiltered and unedited.

There is no one size fits all approach that works best. It's about making decisions for your own unique family and child. My hope is that this episode can help you feel more comfortable having a conversation about unmasking with your own child and understand the importance of prioritizing their physical, mental and emotional health - whatever you choose.

How and what we feed our child can be a polarizing topic for many parents. But we can likely all agree that we want our children to have a healthy, balanced and open relationship to food.

Joining me on the podcast is the CEO of Square Baby and registered dietician & nutritionist, Katie Thomson. We'll talk about ways parents can tune out societal pressures and instead tune into our own children's cues, way for establishing balanced and realistic expectations of our kids (and ourselves), and how we can nurture a healthy relationship between our children and food, right from the start.

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Joining me today is my partner from our joint practice Upshur Bren Psychology Group, Dr. Emily Upshur. We're diving into Diana Baumrind's 4 parenting styles - Permissive, Authoritative, Authoritarian and Neglectful - in order to help guide one mom who wonders how she can break the cycle and raise her child differently from the authoritarian way she herself was raised.

We'll get into the characteristics of each of these styles, the middle ground where most people truly exist, the reasons why an authoritative style is considered the gold standard in child development and strategies you can use to consciously move toward this style in your day to day parenting.

Want to get more from Dr. Sarah Bren?

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✨ And check out her website for more free parenting resources: https://drsarahbren.com/resources

The ripple effects of how we were raised can often be felt in adulthood as we form and show up in relationships. Joining me this week is clinical psychologist and couples therapist Dr. Marina Rosenthal. We'll discuss the intersection between the work I do in family therapy and the work she does with partners. And we'll offer strategies for successful communication and connection skills in your romantic relationships as well as proactive steps you can take with your children to foster secure attachment. She and I get into the impacts of making kids feel safe and seen in childhood and how this can create the building blocks for their ability to form healthy relationships as adults.

Want to get more from Dr. Sarah Bren?

✨ Follow Dr. Sarah on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drsarahbren/

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✨ And check out her website for more free parenting resources: https://drsarahbren.com/resources

Check out this limited time bonus episode before it disappears February 11th!

This past week I presented my live masterclass, Parenting Confidence 101, and I wanted you guys to get a chance to hear it too! In this episode I'll guide you through learning to attend to what will actually move the needle in building your parenting confidence and what really doesn’t. And I’ll teach you some basic psychological principles, so you can respond to your child with attunement and trust.

And if you’re interested in The Authentic Parent: Finding your confidence in your child’s first year, go to drsarahbren.com/TAP to learn more and sign up for this 6-week guided course.

In the course I’II break down the foundational basics of psychology, child development and attachment science into simple to understand and actionable insights, so you can parent from an informed and confident headspace. Doors are only open now through February 11th, so act now if you’re interested in learning to calmly and confidently respond to any problem that arises, connect authentically with your child and truly enjoy parenting!

Want to get more from Dr. Sarah Bren? 

✨ Follow Dr. Sarah on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drsarahbren/

✨ Subscribe to the weekly newsletter: https://drsarahbren.com/join-newsletter

✨ And check out her website for more free parenting resources: https://drsarahbren.com/resources

Hearing stories about how other parents have handled similar situations can make us feel less alone and helps give us context of how other "real" parents apply the principles I talk about within their own families. So with that in mind, I wanted to invite two of my former The Authentic Parent students to come on and talk about their experiences becoming moms for the first and second time, and how they've handled the transitions, challenges, triumphs and joys and built their own community of support.

And if you're interested in The Authentic Parent: Finding your confidence in your child's first year, go to drsarahbren.com/TAP to learn more and sign up for this 6-week guided course.

In the course I'II break down the foundational basics of psychology, child development and attachment science into simple to understand and actionable insights, so you can parent from an informed and confident headspace. Doors are only open now through February 11th, so act now if you're interested in learning to calmly and confidently respond to any problem that arises, connect authentically with your child and truly enjoy parenting!

Want to get more from Dr. Sarah Bren?

✨ Follow Dr. Sarah on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drsarahbren/

✨ Subscribe to the weekly newsletter: https://drsarahbren.com/join-newsletter

✨ And check out her website for more free parenting resources: https://drsarahbren.com/resources

Whether it's in pregnancy, birthing or parenthood, being informed and properly supported can make parents feel safe, present and less anxious.

Joining me this week is birth doula, childbirth educator and founder of C and the Moon, Carson Meyer. We discuss the role of a doula and the importance of having an advocate and grounding influence in the delivery room and the interesting parallels between how feeling empowered and supported in our birth experience can lead to confidence and calm in our transition into motherhood.

Plus we share practical mental health strategies (like finding a community, getting proper nourishment and showing yourself grace) that can be implemented into your daily life. And we dig into the core principle of several different parenting philosophies - forming a trusting relationship with your child - and why that can lift some pressure off your shoulders, help you to parent with ease (most of the time,) and allow both you and your child to relax into a comfortable rhythm.

Want to get more from Dr. Sarah Bren?

✨ Follow Dr. Sarah on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drsarahbren/

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✨ And check out her website for more free parenting resources: https://drsarahbren.com/resources

Pregnant women are being bombarded with a never-ending stream of opinions and advice. How can we find that middle ground, where we feel prepared and knowledgeable without surrounding ourselves with so much noise and worst-case scenarios that we become overwhelmed and fearful?

Joining me this week is board-certified OB/GYN Shieva Ghofrany. Dr. Shieva and I discuss ways to reduce anxiety during pregnancy, how to be resilient during labor (and in life) and the importance of establishing a trusting and collaborative relationship with your OB/GYN and the support systems you surround yourself with.

Want to get more from Dr. Sarah Bren?

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Sacrificing all we have and who we are in our pursuit of being a perfect parent has become a badge of honor in our society. But this isn't a healthy or sustainable model.

Joining me today is journalist, community-builder and Not Safe For Mom Group founder, Alexis Barad-Cutler. The pandemic exposed how many of the systems in our society are broken, especially for parents. If you're feeling fed up, angry, and burnt out there is a way to channel that energy into something positive by asking yourself, how can I play a role in changing this? Alexis will offer some potential solutions for ways we can help ourselves on a personal and societal level.

Want to get more from Dr. Sarah Bren?

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✨ And check out her website for more free parenting resources

Have you ever noticed the way we speak to babies? Our baby-talk voices tend to be a lot more melodic than our natural speech patterns. And there's a good reason for that! Music is more emotional.

Joining me today is a music therapist, psychotherapist and the founder of Baby In Tune, Vered. She and I discuss the power of our voice, how music can play an essential role in regulating our child's nervous system, the importance of lullabies, and strategies for how music can defuse tense parenting moments.

Want to get more from Dr. Sarah Bren?

✨ Follow Dr. Sarah on Instagram

✨ Click here to join the weekly newsletter

✨ And check out her website for more free parenting resources