Raising Good Humans

Gentle parenting turned permissive?  Somewhere between "because I said so" and "is it okay if we go to bed now?", many well-meaning parents lost their footing. In this episode of Raising Good Humans, Dr. Siggie and Dr. Aliza are answering listener questions to unpack how gentle parenting can quietly slide into permissive parenting, and why children actually feel safer when a parent leads with...

Does homework time in your house end in tears, arguments, or a kid still awake at midnight?  In this episode, Dr. Aliza Pressman sits down with Dr. Ellen Braaten, founding director of the Learning and Emotional Assessment Program (LEAP) at Massachusetts General Hospital and associate professor of psychology at Harvard Medical School. Together they unpack why homework has become such a point o...

Does your kid actually know how to be a good friend — or are they just hoping the right friends find them?  In this episode, Dr. Aliza Pressman sits down with Sissy Goff and David Thomas, therapists at Daystar Counseling in Nashville, hosts of the Raising Boys and Girls podcast, and New York Times bestselling authors of Capable. Together they unpack why the back-to-school season triggers so m...

Sibling fights making you crazy?  If you've ever wondered when to intervene in sibling fights versus when to let your kids work it out themselves, this episode gives you a practical framework you can use today. Sibling fights are one of the most common pain points of parenting, and we’ve all been there. In this episode, developmental psychologist and Raising Good Humans host Dr. Aliza Pressma...

Why does a teenage breakup feel like the end of the world for girls, but barely register for boys?  Dr. Aliza Pressman sits down with Dr. Shefali — clinical psychologist, founder of the conscious parenting movement, and New York Times bestselling author of Raising Conscious Daughters and Raising Conscious Sons — for a conversation that finally explains the biology behind teen dating, heartbre...

Is your child's behavior really about who they are — or is it about where you've put them?  In this episode, Dr. Aliza Pressman sits down with Dr. Angela Duckworth, bestselling author of Grit, MacArthur "Genius" Grant winner, and University of Pennsylvania psychologist, to unpack her powerful new book, Situated. Together they explore why the "fundamental attribution error" causes so many pare...

Blaming your kid's attention span on Covid? In this episode, Dr. Aliza Pressman sits down with Georgetown Professor and developmental psychologist, Dr. Anna Johnson, to unpack a landmark special section of 17 longitudinal studies published in Child Development, the field's top journal. Together they walk through what parents have been told about "Covid kids" versus what the actual research shows a...

Sending your teen to their first party?  In this solo episode, developmental psychologist Dr. Aliza Pressman walks parents through exactly how to talk to teenagers about parties before the car ride there. From the alcohol and drug conversation to setting a code word and exit plan, this episode is a practical guide for parenting teenagers through one of the most anxiety-provoking adolescent mi...

Is your child's relationship with food already shaped by guilt, fear, or "good food/bad food" rules — even before they can talk? Registered dietitian Jennifer Anderson, founder of Kids Eat in Color, joins Dr. Aliza Pressman to unpack "embodied independence" — the idea that raising confident eaters means combining a healthy relationship with food and the practical skills to take care of one's body....

Do you know how to disagree with your kid without a fight breaking out? Most of us have been told that the fix for a bad disagreement is more empathy — really try to see it from their side. But Julia Minson, negotiation researcher at Harvard's Kennedy School, joins Dr. Aliza Pressman to share what her experimental research actually shows: telling someone to "try harder to empathize" barely changes...

Do you use your imagination enough? Most parents think of imagination as something for playtime — a "nice to have" that fades once kids get older and life gets "serious." But Dr. Cassandra Vieten, director of science programs at the Arthur C. Clarke Center for Human Imagination at UC San Diego, joins Dr. Aliza Pressman to make the case that imagination is a trainable skill with real developmental...

Dr. Aliza Pressman answers your hardest parenting questions: toddler tantrums, screen time guilt, porn talks, vaping teens & social media limits. Real parenting questions don't come with a manual — so Dr. Aliza Pressman, developmental psychologist and New York Times bestselling author, is answering yours. In this listener Q&A episode, Dr. Pressman offers practical, shame-free parenting strategies...

Can you actually grow your brain? Johns Hopkins neurologist Dr. Majid Fotuhi reveals 5 science-backed ways to build brain volume — even in the chaos of parenthood. In this episode of Raising Good Humans Podcast, Dr. Fotuhi breaks down the research on neuroplasticity and brain health, and helps us all understand how measurable brain growth is possible in as little as 12 weeks. What You’ll Learn: Th...

Should your child get a neuropsychological evaluation? Neuropsychologist Dr. Joanna Jacobs explains what it reveals, who needs one, and why it's not scary. If you've ever been told your child might need a neuropsychological evaluation and felt your stomach drop, this episode is for you. Dr. Aliza Pressman sits down with neuropsychologist Dr. Joanna Jacobs to demystify what a neuro psych evaluation...

Why do constraints help kids thrive? Dr. Aliza Pressman & David Epstein reveal the counterintuitive science of raising resilient, confident children. If you've ever wondered whether making things easier for your kids is actually holding them back, this episode will stop you in your tracks. Dr. Aliza Pressman sits down with bestselling science writer David Epstein, author of Inside the Box, to unpa...

What if the hardest part of dating after divorce isn't whether you're ready, but whether your kids are? This solo episode tackles one of the most-asked, least-discussed questions in the inbox: how to start dating again after divorce in a way that honors your own life and your children's emotional reality. It's a topic carrying guilt, grief, longing, worry, and the very real truth that you are stil...

Postpartum depression isn't just for moms. Dr. Darby Saxbe explores why new dads struggle, identifies the often unrecognized signs, and demystifies the science of paternal mental health. Did you know that "dad brain" is a scientifically proven biological shift? Recent brain science shows that fatherhood literally changes and rewires men's brains--but unlike maternal shifts, a father's brain adapts...

What does it actually mean to be a good parent and why does knowing the research make it harder, not easier? This week I'm sharing an interview I did with Adam Grant on his show, ReThinking,  where we got into the framework I come back to constantly: all feelings are welcome, but all behaviors are not. We talked about gentle parenting, why asking your child to do something nine times is no better...

What if raising secure kids has less to do with what you do wrong as a parent — and more to do with teaching them to build the right relationships from the start? My guest this week is Dr. Amir Levine, molecular neuroscientist, child psychiatrist, and associate professor of clinical psychiatry at Columbia University. His new book, Secure: The Revolutionary Guide to Creating a Secure Life, offers a...

What if the most powerful thing you could do for your child's brain development has nothing to do with them at all? This episode is for any parent who has worried about screen time, big emotions, or whether they're doing enough — and hasn't realized that the most direct path to a flourishing child runs straight through their own mind. I'm joined by Dr. Richard Davidson, neuroscientist, founder of...

What if the reason the hardest conversations with your middle schooler keep going badly isn't the topic — it's that we keep starting them like a lecture? This episode is for any parent who has braced themselves to "have the talk" about porn, dating, nudes, or consent and watched their kid mentally exit the room before the second sentence. I'm joined by Michele Icard, parenting expert and author of...

What if what we call high standards in our kids, and quietly admire in ourselves, is actually something much more painful underneath? This episode takes on a question that hits closer to home than most parents want to admit: have I been confusing high standards with something more punishing, in my kids and in myself? I'm joined by Professor Thomas Curran, social psychologist at the London School o...

⁠What if the years where you feel less rested, less resilient, less yourself aren't burnout or bad parenting — but a hormonal transition no one prepared you for?⁠ This episode tackles a question every woman asks herself: am I losing my edge, or is something actually happening to me? I'm joined by Dr. Mary Claire Haver — the OB-GYN whose work has reshaped how an entire generation of women, doctors,...

What if your child's most "defiant" behavior at home isn't a discipline problem — but a sign of how safe you've made them feel? This solo episode tackles one of the most common questions we all have: what to do when your kid digs in, pushes back, and you can feel yourself slipping toward the version of bedtime you swore you'd never have. It comes on the heels of a Today Show segment with Hoda and...

What if oversharing isn't the real problem — and the quieter habit of holding back is what's keeping us, and our kids, from the connection we're looking for? Dr. Aliza Pressman sits down with Harvard Business School behavioral scientist and author Professor Leslie John to challenge one of the most widespread assumptions in modern parenting and culture: that the path to healthy relationships is lea...