Family in Focus®

If you've ever worried about your child's eating, weight, or health and wondered if you're doing enough, this episode is for you. Many of us have been taught that helping our children means finding the right meal plan, nutrition strategy, or set of rules. But what if the most powerful thing you can do has far less to do with food than you've been led to believe? In this episode of Family in Focus...

If you've ever been told to "just connect with your child" but found yourself wondering what that actually looks like in the middle of a busy weeknight, this episode is for you. Connection has become one of the most common pieces of parenting advice, but it's often misunderstood. We turn it into a strategy to get our children to eat differently, behave differently, or change. But connection was ne...

If you have ever caught yourself saying something about food or your child's body that sounded just like something you heard growing up, this episode is for you. When you're worried about your child's eating habits or weight, it's easy to believe the answer is more control, better nutrition advice, or the perfect plan. But many of the messages we carry about food, bodies, and health were never int...

If you feel stuck trying to improve your child's eating habits and wondering whether you just need a better meal plan, this episode is for you. Many parents are told that the solution is simple: serve healthier foods, cut out certain foods, or find the right nutrition plan. But if changing meals were enough, most families would already be seeing the results they want. In this episode of Family in...

If worries about your child's weight or eating habits have started taking up more and more space in your mind, this episode is for you. When we're worried, it's easy to focus so hard on what needs to change that we lose sight of everything that's already going well. In this episode of Family in Focus, I share a simple mindset shift that can help you step out of fear, see the whole child again, and...

If you've just been told that your child needs to lose weight and you're feeling worried, overwhelmed, or unsure what to do next, this episode is for you. In this episode of Family in Focus, I walk you through the first three steps you can take after hearing concerns about your child's weight. Because what you do next matters. You may be carrying fear, guilt, shame, or an urgent desire to fix the...

If you feel stuck between trying to “fix” your child’s eating habits and wanting to give up altogether, this episode is for you. In this episode of Family in Focus, I unpack the stress, pressure, and overwhelm many parents experience when trying to help their children build healthier relationships with food and their bodies. Because food battles are often not just about food. Many parents find the...

If you are worried about emotional eating in kids and wondering how to help your child without shame, pressure, or food battles, this episode is for you. In this episode of Family in Focus, I unpack emotional eating in children, stress eating, and the unmet needs that often sit beneath eating behaviors. Because emotional eating is not simply about food, discipline, or “bad habits.” Many times, it...

If you have ever found yourself thinking, “Just tell me what to feed my kid,” this episode is for you. In this episode of Family in Focus, I unpack one of the biggest misconceptions parents carry when it comes to changing eating habits and weight concerns at home: the belief that the answer is simply finding the “right” foods, meal plan, or nutrition advice. Because the problem is usually not a la...

If you have ever tried to make healthier changes at home and been met with resistance, tears, or a flat-out “I hate this,” this episode is for you. In this episode of Family in Focus , I walk through what is actually happening when your child pushes back on food changes and why it does not mean you are doing anything wrong. Because the resistance you are seeing is not defiance. It is development....

If you have ever watched your child say something painful about their body and had no idea what to say back, this episode is for you. In this episode of Family in Focus, I walk through what it actually looks like when diet culture gets to your kid — and more importantly, four ways to show up when it does. Because the instinct to correct, reassure, and fix is coming from love. But it is often the t...

If you have ever left your child's well visit feeling like you did something wrong, this episode is for you. In this episode of Family in Focus, I break down the history of BMI, diet culture, and why weight became the focus of your child's doctor visit. Because your doctor did not make up that advice. But understanding where it actually comes from changes everything. Because the message has a hist...

If you have ever been told to focus on your child’s BMI, weight, or eating habits and felt like something wasn’t adding up, this episode is for you. In this episode of Family in Focus , I unpack the truth about BMI, pediatric weight guidance, and why the traditional “eat less, move more” approach often fails families. Because it is not your child who is failing. It may be the system. We explore ho...

If you have ever left your child’s doctor’s appointment feeling confused about BMI, worried about your child’s health, or unsure how to respond to conversations about weight, this episode is for you. In this episode of Family in Focus, I break down what is often missing from pediatric conversations about BMI and weight, and how weight stigma in children is impacting both their health and their rel...

If your child has ever said something like “I hate how I look,” and you felt unsure what to say next, this episode is for you. In this episode of Family in Focus, I share a different way to respond in those moments when your child is struggling with body image, food, or how they see themselves. Because your child does not need you to fix it. They need you to stay with them in it. Drawing from impr...

If you have ever felt stuck trying to do things “the right way” for your child, this episode is for you. In this episode of Family in Focus, I explore how perfectionism shapes the way we parent and creates stress, pressure, and disconnection in everyday family life. Because it is rarely about getting it right. Perfectionism often shows up as the belief that things need to look a certain way before...

If you have ever felt overwhelmed trying to help your child with eating, weight, or health—this conversation is for you. In this episode of Family in Focus , I’m joined by Joey Skelton, MD, MS, FAAP and Dara Garner-Edwards, MSW, LCSW , co-authors of Your Child Is Not Their Weight: Parenting in a Size-Obsessed World . Together, we explore how to support your child without shame, pressure, or food b...

If you are frustrated by constant conversations about your child’s eating habits, this episode is for you. In this episode of Family in Focus, I explain why focusing on habits often keeps families stuck and how shifting your attention to patterns can completely change the way you approach eating behaviors at home. Because it is rarely just about habits. What looks like a habit on the surface is of...

If you are worried about eating disorders, disordered eating, dieting, or the intense focus on weight in today’s culture, this episode is for you. In this episode of Family in Focus, I explore what actually happens when weight becomes the hidden focus in your home and how that quiet shift can shape your child’s relationship with food, body image, and self-worth. Because it is rarely just about wei...

If you are struggling with your child’s eating habits, mealtime battles, picky eating, or concerns about weight, this episode is for you. In this episode of Family in Focus , I share 3 simple steps to transform your child’s relationship with food by addressing the emotional patterns and nervous system dynamics happening at home. Because it is not just about the food. It is about the patterns. Your...

If you are worried about childhood obesity, BMI percentiles, or your child’s eating habits, this episode is for you. As a pediatrician, I see how often parents are told to focus on weight, growth charts, and body mass index, or BMI. But when we focus only on the number, we miss the deeper factors influencing your child’s health, emotional eating patterns, and relationship with food. In this episod...

Some days, parenting does not just feel hard. It feels confusing. You are trying to do the right thing for your child, especially around food and health, but the messages are overwhelming. Eat this. Do not eat that. Worry about weight. Do not talk about weight. Move more. Stress less. Somewhere in all of that, it can start to feel like you are failing. If that sounds familiar, you are not alone. Y...

If you are trying to help your child make changes and it feels like nothing is working, this episode is for you. I hear it every day from parents. Food feels like a battle. Screens feel impossible to limit. Movement feels forced. And no matter how hard you try, it can start to feel like you are failing over and over again. In this episode, I want to say this clearly. You are not failing. What is f...

Hey. I see you. I know the struggle. Let me ask you something. What would it mean if you didn’t feel so much pressure around your child’s eating, growth, or health? What would it be like to stop sorting through advice that feels stressful or even harmful? I’d like to invite you to Family in Focus, a space for parents who want to lead change without harm. We focus on connection over control, emotio...

Are you craving authentic connections and meaningful conversations? Me too, which is why I turned to my favorite person (Person!) in the world, Jen Person, to have my first coffee conversation. Jen is a badass executive, leadership and personal development coach, so well-versed in emotional intelligence and.... she is my sister. We connected for a completely unscripted conversation and let it rip!...