ParentEd

Why do children love playing mobile and internet games? Their answer is usually "Gaming is fun!" but there are often underlying reasons to "just being fun". As parents, how do we identify the issues and help our children cope with their gaming habits? Joining our host Chong Ee Jay is Ray Chua, a senior clinical psychologist specialising in helping gamers with problematic gaming behaviours since 20...

Have you found yourself in moments where you're fighting hard to hold back your natural response to your child's anxieties? Joining our host, Alicia Boo, is Chan Swee Fen, a family life educator, counsellor and a trainer facilitator. They discuss ways to identify signs of anxiety in our children and techniques to help them overcome their worries and anxieties. Using the acronym C.A.L.M., Swee...

Raising children comes with a myriad of challenges and concerns, be it physical, psychological or academical. Despite these stresses, can parents raise resilient children with a Growth mind-set? How can a Growth mind-set empower and enable our children to thrive as they grow and mature? Join our host, June Yong, who chats with Jocelyn Wee, a mother of 3 and an educator who teaches primary and seco...

No man knows what parenthood has in store until he becomes a father. But before that moment arrives, is it possible for one to be ready for fatherhood? How can fathers embrace being a son, husband, father, and friend all at the same time? Join our host, Chong Ee Jay, who chats with Isaac Tan, a father of a daughter, with another on the way! Speaking of strong foundations for one's journey of fathe...

Nobody likes to be nagged at. Or being the nag. But couples often find themselves caught in these situations of being annoyed with each other. Is there a way to end the nagging? Joining our host, Alicia Boo, is Natalie Yeo who has been married for four years. They dissect the anatomy of nagging and Natalie shares her hard-fought journey of first-year nagging woes to present-time win-win situations...

With the recent government announcement regarding removing mid-year examinations for all primary and secondary school students, what have parents made of this decision? Would it mean less practice for examinations or one less opportunity to track their child's academic progress? Joining our host, June Yong, is mother of two, Judith, who shares her honest thoughts about what is truly important in a...

Until parents hold a crying infant in their arms, the potential of loss can be a cruel, nagging thought as they await Baby's arrival. But as the day draws nearer, how does a first-time dad deal with the overflowing thoughts and emotions? This week's host, Joanna Koh-Hoe, chats with Aaron Ng once again, a familiar voice on the ParentEd podcast. While Aaron didn't have his dad present in his growing...

Pregnancy and preparation often go hand-in-hand for first-time parents. From conception to birth, what does the journey of becoming mum entail? How does a wife prepare herself to become mum? What are the thoughts and emotions that one thinks and feels in anticipation of becoming a parent? What would parenthood take? Joining our host, Joanna Koh-Hoe, is married couple Aaron and Joy-Anne Ng who are...

Married life really brings a dose of reality that can be different from what we expect. How do couples bridge this gap without feeling disillusioned? Joining our host, Aaron Ng, is Ivan and Kerin Lau, a young couple who got married in 2020 and now have a 8 month old baby. Exploring how couples can communicate and negotiate expectations with the realities of married life, Ivan and Kerin share their...

As if the pandemic hasn't already brought on a gamut of stressors, but married couples have had to care for their families, and... learn to be each other's colleagues too. How has this unexpected and unique dynamic impacted families? Joining our host, Delia Ng, is married couple Daniel and Alicia Chai who have four children aged between 6 and 12. Delving into the topic of being spouses and colleag...

"Worthy now. Not if. Not when. We are worthy of love and belonging now. Right this minute. As is." - The Gifts of Imperfection" Father-Daughter relationships are intricate, in that fathers play a key role in their daughter's psychological development. How can fathers be role-models for their daughters in order for them to grow up as confident and secure young ladies? Joining our host, Joanna Koh-H...

“My child was shown sexually explicit images by friends in school.” “I caught my child viewing porn.” Have you or someone you know been in such situations? Join this week's host, June Yong, as she hears from Violet about her challenging experience of discovering her 9 year old son viewing porn. Pushing through her initial shock and fears, Violet started having age-appropriate conversations on sex...

When a marriage grows cold and home feels dreadful, is there anything more than to call it quits? Lily and David share candidly with host Joanna Koh-Hoe about their divorce, individual journeys of growth apart, and eventually remarriage. What keeps them going now are these two words "Press On", now engraved on their wedding rings. They believe that "There will always be light at the end of the tun...

Unity in marriage might seem easier with the union of two similar people. Alas, that’s rarely the case. Like teammates playing different positions in a sports team, how can couples play for the Big Goal of Marriage? Join this week’s host, Aaron Ng, as he finds out what Reuben and Ronice Ng have discovered early in their marriage. From a 41-day wedding preparation, to relocation to UK three weeks l...

Entering Primary School for the first time often bring both a sense of excitement and nervousness for both parent and child. How can parents prepare their children for successful transition to Primary School? Joining our host, Susan Koh, is mother of two, Adelene Chan. In preparing a child for entering Primary School, Susan and Adelene discuss parenting approaches, life skills a parent hopes to in...

People often say that sex takes a backseat after a couple gets married and have children. But as we know, sex is an integral part of our marriage and like all things worth working on, healthy and open communication creates that improvement. Sexual issues are also cited as the primary cause of broken marriages. How can we reclaim and enjoy the beautiful gift of sexual intimacy with our spouse? In t...

The tween years are often transitional as both parents and tweens adapt to changes — environmentally, physically and emotionally. How can parents and tweens be safe spaces, to share openly without hurting one another through the process? Joining our host, Susan Koh, are mother and son, Judith and Micah. Over candid and honest stories, they chat about changes that both parents and tweens go through...

No human being is perfect and it is only natural to expect that we will make mistakes in our relationships, especially the ones closest in proximity. How can parents create a safe space for our children to be real and unafraid to express both their joys and struggles with us? Joining our host, June Yong, are husband and wife, Mark and Sue Lim. Over candid stories, they share about how they built a...

"The battle is lost once someone stops trying." Marriage is often said to be for a lifetime, yet one might wonder if resolving conflicts again and again is worth the effort. If we desire to stay committed to our partner, how do we prevent conflicts from slowly tearing our marriage apart? In this episode, our host Delia Ng chats with Nelson and Gina Lee on how to differentiate healthy and destructi...

In recent years, one stark issue that has surfaced is our children’s state of mental health — events like the heartbreaking incident at River Valley High and rising suicides among those aged 10-19 confront us. A recent poll conducted among 600 youth also revealed that more than half rarely or almost never share their personal problems with family. With such worry...

"For better or for worse, till death do us part."   We are all familiar with these words. When we get married, we expect to grow old together and maybe even get to raise our grandchildren together or enjoy our golden years picking up new hobbies together after a long life of hard work. But what happens when death parts us earlier than expected? In this...

STRESS - We all feel it, we all succumb to its effects sometimes and it’s a part of life that some may say is more obvious in fast-paced Singapore. Amidst the pandemic, we have also been hearing more about the mental load of going through this pandemic. Whether it’s work stress, parenting stress or a personal crisis, how do we make sure we don’t let it kill our marriages and relationships at home?...

Life in Singapore is really busy. Parents struggle to just find time for themselves, and it is a challenge sometimes to spend dedicated, committed and intentional time with our children, especially as they get older. As new parents, it is easy and natural to be caught up in the cuteness of our babies, even though we may be sleep deprived or exhausted. But as our child gets older, sometimes the sen...

National Service (NS) in Singapore has indeed become very different over the years – some may say for better or for worse, but it remains an important rite of passage for males in Singapore. In fact, it is a major milestone not just for the enlistees, but perhaps more so for the parents who have to “release” their sons to what they might be seen as “hardship”&nbs...

Exams can be stressful, both for children and parents. And when you have high stake exams like Singapore's PSLE (Primary School Leaving Examination) or GCE N, O and A levels, the stress levels just shoot through the roof. How can parents help their child to navigate exams stress, build resilience and maintain a positive parent child relationship when tensions may run high?  In this episo...