Pop Culture Parenting

In this reflection episode we discuss how we can set our kids up to succeed through their teens, how to spot when something is wrong and what we can do to help. We also chat about how to support teens through bullying, keeping things from us, finding their identity, phones and much more! Thank you to everyone who sent in questions, advice and reflections, we hope this episode honours your story.

Adolescence is an important developmental window during which identity is explored and relationships are strengthened. It can also be a turbulent time during which mental illness spikes and the kids we care about become lost. Luckily there is so much we can do to prepare ourselves and our younger kids for this period. The evidence can also guide us if we are currently supporting a teen even if it...

In this reflection episode we hear from PCP listeners who generously share their stories of survival with reflections, questions and advice. It's a vulnerable conversation with an emotional ending but we hope it helps people find the kindness and compassion for themselves that we work on for ourselves. Thank you to everyone who contributed, we feel so lucky to have you in the area with us!

This episode is a little different to our others. PCP aims to guide us all about how we can better support the kids in our lives. Sometimes though the weight of doing better can be too much. In this honest chat we talk about sometimes needing to just survive and how best to do that without feeling like a gladiator constantly fighting in the arena. We hope this helps lighten that burden and we can'...

In our second reflection episode about nurturing neurodiversity we dive into the science of neurodiversity and how it can be used in the real world to support the kids in our lives. We hear from exceptional educators about how to best support neurodivergent students, discuss research about pathological demand avoidance (PDA) and explore mental health and trauma relating to neurodiversity. We end o...

In this part 1 reflection episode we discuss how the evidence can guide us regarding many of the challenges neurodivergent kids face. We cover questions about masking, rejection sensitive dysphoria, neurodiversity and emotional sensitivity, fitting in, medication and many more. Thank you for the wonderful questions, reflections and advice that the amazing PCP community sent in. We hope you like it...

After so many requests from the amazing PCP community we are diving back in to talk about neurodiversity and how we can better support these beautiful kids. We discuss how movies, beliefs and a deficit approach can cause harm and limit potential. We dive into how we can help neurodivergent children and teens feel safe and experience success using the science in the real world. We can not wait to h...

In this reflection episode we go deeper into conflict resolution using reflections, questions and advice from the wonderful PCP community. We explore how we can support conflict resolution at different developmental stages from toddlers to teens, what schools can do and how we can work on this within ourselves. Thank you to everyone who sent in their messages and we hope you like the episode.

Dealing with conflict can be a big challenge of life and lead to damage within ourselves, our relationships and the broader community. We first learn how to deal with conflict during childhood and unfortunately often in unhealthy ways. Luckily there is so much we can do to guide kids though these tough times. In this episode Nick & Billy discuss why it's important and how we can better resolve con...

In this episode we blast off into the future fuelled by wonderful reflections, questions and guidance from the beautiful PCP community. We discuss ways to move from anxiety to action, frustration tolerance, worries and neurodiversity, potential pitfalls (good old resilience) and our own fear about the future regarding the kids we care about. Thank you to everyone who sent in messages and questions...

Worries about the future are a common source of stress for kids and a tricky topic for those supporting them to navigate. From typical concerns to clinical anxiety it is important that we have tools we can use to help children when these challenges arise. In this episode we discuss how important our beliefs and behaviours about the future are, including in the media, in regards to how worried or h...

In part 3 of our Beautiful Boys topic we honour some of the powerful stories and insights from the amazing PCP community who continue to guide and inspire us. We also cover some important questions, hear about practical advice and end on a the story of beautiful man who provides a north star for those of us trying to find our way.

In the first of two reflections about how we can raise beautiful boys Nick and Billy explore some of the amazing reflections, questions and tips from the PCP community. We cover how we can push back against some of the damage patriarchy inflicts on us, how to guide growing minds towards healthier versions of masculinity and the importance of emotional understanding and expression in young boys. We...

Boys and girls learn from a young age that they are different because of how caregivers and our broader society treats them. This inequity is destructive to all of us, especially in regards to mental illness, developmental trauma and intimate partner violence. As heartbreaking as the stories and statistics are there is so much we can do to better guide our growing boys that supports them and all t...

In this reflection episode we answer questions about connection from how we do it with ourselves, our partners, newborn babies, dysregulated children and reluctant teens. As always we are humbled by the beautiful reflections, inspired by powerful stories and guided by amazing advice. Thank you PCP and we hope you connect with this latest episode.

Connection is an important first step in guiding our kids but one that is often misunderstood or missed entirely. In this episode we discuss why it matters and how we can give ourselves the best chance to connect with the kids we care about to guide them through the tough times. We hope you like it and can't wait to hear your reflections, questions and advice.

We had an amazing evening celebrating our 100th episode and we hope you enjoy it as an episode. You can also watch the entire event on our youtube channel too! We forgot to read out the poll questions so we've included them below with answers. Thank you all for an amazing 100 episodes and episode 101 will be out in early Feb 2025. Check out our Patreon in the mean time as we grow our community the...

Love is in the air in this episode with beautiful reflections, honest questions and overwhelming feedback about love. Please have tissues ready as we both needed them multiple times in this heartfelt journey through a small fraction of the amazing emails and messages that were sent to us on this important topic. Thank you to everyone who has shared this journey with us over the last 3 years. We ho...

For the final topic of the year Nick & Billy discuss a subject close to their hearts. Interstellar & love is an adventurous exploration of the science of love and how it can guide us in supporting the children in our lives. Please send in your questions about love, reflections on your own experience and tips to help all of us navigating this space. It's been a wild spaceship ride and we love all o...

Well it's a big episode this week full of laughs and tears. So many inspiring stories of hope, honesty about the challenges of resilience and hopefully some helpful discussion about how we can all support the kids in our community. Thank you to everyone who sent in questions. We feel so privileged to be a part of the PCP community.

One of the best movies paired with one of the most important topics. In this episode we discuss the evidence regarding resilience, how is can be developed in real life (and in Shawshank State Penitentiary) without leading to failure and further harm. We hope you enjoy this chat and we can't wait to hear your reflections, questions and tips!

In this reflection episode we dive into the application of parenting style research through the life course from babies to teens and of course all of us as adults just trying to get a little better at this each day. It's no surprise that the reflections, questions and advice sent in by the gorgeous PCP community once again is the podcasts greatest asset. Thank you to everyone who sent in messages,...

This week's episode is so fetch. Nick and Billy discuss the amazing movie Mean Girls and the research around parenting style that led to Regina George. We reflect on our own style and role play different approaches to see the research in action. We hope you enjoy our chat and we can't wait to read your reflections, questions and tips!

Big feelings reflection part 2 is filled with heartfelt questions, reflections and tips from the amazing PCP community. We discuss tough behaviours and hurtful words, what we can say and strategies we can use to allow our kids (and us) to have big feelings without suffering from their impact on us and those around us. We hope you enjoy & thank you to everyone who contributed!

Huge reflection episode with vulnerable questions, heartfelt feedback and practical tips from listeners. We also celebrate a big milestone so thanks to the amazing PCP community for all of your support. Too many great questions to cover in one reflection so we will dive deep into big feelings again next episode!