Less Drama More Mama

Rewards. Kids love them. Adults love them. How could there possibly be a problem with them? Join me for this episode, where I share how rewards, like punishments, are not only ineffective, but counterproductive when it comes to solving behavior problems and motivating kids. www.lessdramamoremama.com/066 The post The Problem with Rewards – 066 appeared first on Less Drama More Mama .

How did people describe you as a kid? Were you "the shy one,” “the sensitive one” or “the wild one?” Were you "athletic," "nerdy," or "gifted?" Now your kids are being labeled, too -- by you, their teachers, and their peers. Join me for this episode, as I share how labels impact kids, and how they shape the way you (and others) interact with them. www.lessdramamoremama.com/065 The post Disabling Y...

“We don't see things as they are, we see them as we are.” -- Anais Nin I find the human brain fascinating. When we think a negative thought, our brains go to work looking for (and creating) evidence to prove it true. When we think a positive thought, our brains go to work looking for (and creating) evidence to prove that true, too. When we give ourselves evidence to prove a thought, the neural pat...

Do you have quiet moments throughout your day? Or are you always filling your head with the sounds of podcasts, music, news, and energetic kids? Turn off your notifications and tune in for today's episode to learn about the benefits of quiet time and how to incorporate more of it into your day. www.lessdramamoremama.com/063 The post Peace and Quiet – 063 appeared first on Less Drama More Mama .

As people get older, they tend to look back at where they’ve been, rather than ahead to where they’re going. They just ride out their lives re-creating their past over and over again. Living from the past is a very predictable, safe, and comfortable way to live. But if you're yearning for more and wish to create a future that's different from your past, this episode is for you. Join me as I share...

If you want your kids to take responsibility for their actions, handle mistakes with grace, and apologize with sincerity, this episode is for you. Many parents force their kids to apologize when they've made a mistake, rather than help them learn from it and understand another person's point of view. Join me for this episode, where I talk about how to help your kids make amends after they've made...

Are you ready to stop losing your sh*t with your kids? Today on the podcast, I interview Carla Naumburg, PhD. about her most recent book on that very topic. Carla is funny, relatable, and knowledgeable about helping moms learn how to feel better about themselves, get the support they need, and manage the hardships of motherhood. Join us for this fun conversation, in which Carla shares some highlig...

I've coached so many moms who harbor resentment toward their husbands that I wanted to dedicate an entire episode to it. If you don’t have a husband or you don’t feel resentment toward yours, feel free to substitute someone else. All of the concepts will apply if you're feeling resentful towards anyone. Join me as I talk about what resentment is, what causes it, and how to let it go. www.lessdrama...

Today, we're wrapping up the three-part series about your child's core emotional needs. In part one, I talked about your kids' need for connection. Part two was all about giving your kids more control over their lives and why it's so challenging to do. Part three is about the third need, competence; the ability to do things successfully or efficiently. When all three of these core needs (connectio...

Last week I talked about your child's need for connection and how to support that need through involvement, warmth, empathy, and responsiveness. In this second part of the three-part series on core emotional needs, I discuss your child's need for control over his or her own life. Join me as I talk about how to help your child satisfy this need and why it can be so challenging to do. Remember to tu...

According to the Self-Determination Theory of Motivation, all humans have three innate psychological needs. Over the next three episodes, I'll explain each of these core needs and why they’re important. I'll also address how to know when your child's needs aren’t being met and share strategies for how to nurture and support them. Join me for today's episode where I talk about the first core need:...

Every day, you make a promise to yourself to stop yelling at your kids. And every day, you break that promise. You feel guilty and ashamed, and decide there must be something wrong with you. Why else would you feel so out of control and keep doing something you don't want to do? Join me in this episode to learn why it's so hard to stop yelling and what you can do about it. www.lessdramamoremama.co...

Do you wish you could stop feeling so overwhelmed all the time? As moms, we take on a lot of responsibilities -- housework, meal prep, shopping, driving, helping with homework, and cleaning up messes.  There never seems to be enough money to deal with all the home repairs, after school activities, family vacations, and car payments. Keeping up with health goals and friendships seems impossible. Wh...

How are you feeling about the new school year? Are you relieved? Overwhelmed? A nervous wreck? Don't miss this episode, where I'll share my tips for feeling calm and confident about the year ahead, and how to help your kids through their transition back to school. www.lessdramamoremama.com/053 The post Adjusting to a New School Year – 053 appeared first on Less Drama More Mama .

The majority of my clients come to me believing that they’re bad moms. They feel like failures. They feel guilty, ashamed, and inadequate. They tell me they just want to be good moms. But what does that even mean? Who decides what makes a good mom, anyway? Join me for today's episode, where I talk about how I define being a good mom for myself and how you can define it for yourself, too. www.lessd...

I-Statements are a technique often recommended by counselors and therapists to help with communication. They're supposed to reduce defensiveness when trying to resolve conflicts by focusing on how you feel, rather than attacking the other person's behavior. As a school counselor, I used to teach I-Statements to my students until I realized that they were mostly ineffective and dis-empowering. Join...

Today on the podcast, I interview two VERY special guests. They're the ones who call me "Mommy." Marissa (13) and Dalia (almost 10!), share what they know and understand about what I teach as a life coach. They offer their advice to moms about parenting and self-talk. They discuss making mistakes, siblings, growing up, girl drama, their relationships with me, and more. Please enjoy these conversat...

When my clients first learn that they're in control of their thoughts and feelings, they’re blown away. They feel like they've just unlocked the secret of the Universe...which, of course, they have. They want to start changing all of their negative thoughts right away, but often, they get stuck. The thoughts they’ve been thinking up until that point feel TRUE. Join me for this episode to learn a p...

When you hear the term “separation anxiety,” you probably think of a toddler clinging to his mother’s leg and crying while she’s trying to leave the house or the preschool. I wanted to do an episode about separation anxiety for moms who become excessively anxious when separated from their kids. It’s a lot more common than you think. And so this is for you, whether your kids are going off to Kinder...

As of today, there are more than 50,000 parenting books on Amazon. These books are filled with different techniques, strategies, theories, and opinions related to parenting that often contradict one another, which can leave parents feeling confused, frustrated, and even hopeless. Of course, reading parenting books can be very helpful to learn about topics such as child development and effective pa...

Nothing seems to upset parents more than when their child lies to them. But since lying is a normal and natural part of child development, every parent deals with it at some point. While you may not have control over whether or not your kids lie to you, you do have control over how you think, feel, and act when they do. Join me in this episode as I talk about why kids lie, and how to think about l...

We’re taught to believe that the quality of a friendship depends on how people behave toward each other. But that's not true. The quality of a friendship really depends on how people think about each other. If you're feeling dissatisfied with a friendship or want to know how to enhance the ones you've got, join me in this episode as I go into depth about what friendship actually is, and how to kee...

From an early age, friendships are a vital part of our social development and emotional well-being. As we grow older, and especially after having kids, we tend to get so caught up in our responsibilities at home and at work that we sometimes neglect to foster our connections with people other than our kids, spouses, and immediate family members. But before you go start looking for new friends, it'...

I've coached many moms who struggle with loneliness. Their husbands travel for work. Their families live far away. They've been through a divorce. And yet, I've also worked with moms in these same exact situations who don't feel lonely at all. How is that possible? Join me for this episode where I talk about what actually causes loneliness (it's not what you might think!) and how to overcome it. w...

Most of us would never speak to our best friends the way we speak to ourselves. When we make a mistake or act in a way we regret, we mentally beat ourselves up with harsh, negative self-talk. Our brains think that this kind of self-punishment is somehow protective and helpful. In this episode, I explain why we beat ourselves up, why it's counterproductive, and the process for how to stop doing it....