Your Kids Don’t Suck: Cultivating Closeness with your Kids through Non-Coercive, Conscious Parenting

S3EP23 — Content Advisory: This episode discusses healing from childhood sexual abuse. While co-host Cara is on maternity leave, Rythea welcomes in Season 4 with a solo episode. Rythea weaves in and out of her horrific upbringing, her loving relationship with her daughter, the temporal news of the release of the Epstein files and how it is impacting her at this time. As she shares more about her a...

S3EP22 — We are joined by Amy Niemczyk, a parent (just like you!) whose family dynamic has drastically shifted since adopting the non-coercive, collaborative parenting philosophy. This is an excellent episode for parents who are searching for concrete tools for navigating kids’ physical expression (like biting) and resolving sibling struggles. Amy and her partner are the parents to four young chil...

S3EP21 — How do attachment wounds impact our ability to see our children as separate from us, and even from our own parents? We discuss the incredible, unconscious urge to replay our attachment pains onto our children, and what it takes to recognize (and change) those impulses within the non-coercive, collaborative approach. Join Rythea and Cara as they get vulnerable about their personal attachme...

S1 EP7 re-release — We dive into a Q&A format addressing two thought-provoking questions from our listeners. Question one comes from a non-parent who comes to terms with the ways in which their own parents hurt them. Many of us grapple with the realization that our parents may have unintentionally or intentionally hurt us in the past, but the decision to confront them as an adult is a complex...

S2 EP1 re-release: Let's talk coparenting relationships and collaborative parenting! Joined by Rythea's partner Will and Cara's husband Sanjay, the conversation unfolds into a heartfelt exploration of parenting dynamics and philosophies. Sanjay and Will offer unique perspectives on parenting, bringing diverse backgrounds and value systems to the table. Together, they share their personal journeys...

S3EP18 — Many parents who reject authoritarian parenting don’t have a clear model to follow. It can feel isolating, overwhelming, and exhausting—especially in a society that prioritizes punishment, control, and individualism over connection and collaboration. In this confronting and compassion-filled episode, Rythea speaks with Yolanda Williams, an activist and single parent raising her neurodiver...

S3EP17 — Disclaimer: This episode includes discussion of sensitive topics, including abuse, sexual abuse, and childhood sexual abuse. Although there are no explicit descriptions of child sexual abuse during the episode, please take care of yourself as you listen. If this content feels overwhelming or triggering, we encourage you to pause or take a break. Your safety and well-being matter more than...

S3EP16 —Cara and Rythea dig into how hypocritical they feel as parent advocates when they fall so short on their own commitment to staying loving. They have a good laugh and some deep process about how childhood wounds and unconscious aspects of self show up when they least expect it. They explore specific situations where they have worked hard to be different, but keep getting triggered into the...

S3EP15 — How is our parenting an act of resistance or compliance to larger systems that harm? How do we know if we are unconsciously carrying out patterns of oppression in our families? What does it look like to step out of what is expected of us and parent from ancestral values? In this episode, Leslie Priscilla shares how being raised by two Mexican immigrants and parenting her own bicultural ch...

S3EP14 — We heard you and you want to know: How the hell do you collaboratively and consciously parent when you have multiple kids?! Non-coercive, conscious mom-to-five, Tanisha Henderson is here to answer this question and SO MUCH MORE. The episode begins with Tanisha sharing her personal journey to becoming a conscious, collaborative parent. She discusses her inspirations, pivotal moments, and t...

S3EP13 — In this powerful episode, Cara and Rythea sit down with Josh Connolly , bestselling author of It’s Them, Not You: How to Break Free from Toxic Parents and Reclaim Your Story . Josh has become a leading voice in the mental health world, known for his no-nonsense approach to healing family trauma and supporting those affected by parental alcohol issues and toxic parents. Together, they disc...

S3EP12 — A deeply honest episode where Cara and Rythea dive into the nuanced world of non-coercive parenting through the lens of Internal Family Systems, Parts Work Therapy , and Inner Bonding . They unpack what it means to parent in the moment while working with merged parts —protective internal voices that take over when we're triggered, especially by our kids. This episode explores the uncomfor...

S3EP11 — We sit down with our social media manager/helper/everything-assistant, Joey D’Angelo, who shares their relationship with our work on the podcast. Joey is not a parent, but is full of childlike wonder and endless compassion, and has been on a recovery journey which includes reparenting herself. What happens when we turn the principles of mutual respect, emotional regulation, and co-regulat...

S3EP10 — As non-coercive, collaborative parents, how do we move through self-blame and really trust our child’s process? In this episode, Cara supports Rythea to explore the trigger of being helpless over her daughter’s pain. Rythea unpacks, in real time, patterns of self-hatred and self-blame that are tied to underlying beliefs around parenting and self-worth. Rythea, with Cara’s facilitation, mo...

S3EP9 — Amanda Diekman is the author of Low-Demand Parenting , to explore the intersection of PDA (Pathological Demand Avoidance), neurodiversity, and low-demand parenting. Key Topics: What PDA is and is not – Understanding PDA as a profile rather than a diagnosis, and clearing up common misconceptions. Why PDA is widely discussed today – How awareness of PDA has grown and why so many neurodiverge...

S3EP8 — Let's get into the practical side of non-coercive, collaborative parenting (NCC) — how to guide children without control, how our triggers shape our reactions , and why guiding our kids is an essential part of the philosophy (even though many NCC parents struggle with it). We start by checking in on how we’ve been doing lately and explore how our personal triggers challenge us to reframe o...

S3EP7 — Vivek Patel is back in a paradigm-shifting episode where we explore the transformative power of parenting as a spiritual practice. Together, we dive into the profound ways parenting forces us to confront our deepest blocks, triggers, and fears. From sleepless nights to moments of deep connection, this episode unpacks how the challenges of raising children can lead to unparalleled personal...

S3EP6 — Do you ever feel like your child makes you become a person you vowed you would never be? Have you noticed that you act like a version of yourself you don’t recognize in regular life? This is because we have parts - internal parts that get triggered by your kids and by feeling helpless as a parent. We go into parts of ourselves from childhood that rear up from our past and cause us emotiona...

S3EP5 — Researcher and parent Ash Lowenthal is here to discuss their PhD work on trauma-informed care and non-coercive, collaborative parenting. Ash shares their passion for challenging systems that perpetuate trauma and explores how these principles can inform parenting journeys. Key Topics: Parallels between non-coercive parenting and trauma-informed care in professional settings. Why traditiona...

What can happen when two friends (who happen to be therapists) support each other to explore wounds and triggers with the intention of becoming a more loving parent? What does the process of tracking our triggers back in time look like? What does it mean to love the child we once were? In this episode of Your Kids Don’t Suck, Rythea supports Cara as she navigates recent feelings of low-level anxie...

Do you struggle with playing with your kids? When playfulness is required to make a difficult moment easier, do you feel blocked, stuck, shut-down, or reactive? In this episode, therapists Cara and Rythea dive into the transformative power of playing with your kids, no matter their age. They explore the why behind play—why it’s essential for healthy development and connection—and dig into the rese...

Sometimes you meet someone online or in person and it changes the course of your life. Dayna Martin’s book called “Radical Unschooling” was part of (co-host) Rythea Lee’s parenting wake up call. She joined Dayna’s support groups and coached with her during a time of deep distress and confusion. Dayna’s loving and articulate allyship of her children and children everywhere helped Rythea turn toward...

We’re back with a brand new season featuring the wonderful Iris Chen from @untigering! Iris shares her personal experiences of transitioning from being a "tiger mother" to a parent who fosters connection, collaboration, and respect with her children. In this episode: - Defining Untigering: What does it mean to be a “deconstructing tiger mother”? Iris breaks down the concept of "untigering" and how...

In this episode of YKDS, therapists Cara and Rythea delve into a powerful therapeutic process with Rythea, exploring how her triggers impact her parenting choices. Using the Internal Family Systems (IFS) therapy modality as a guide, they help Rythea to identify and understand the different parts of herself that influence her feelings and behaviors and how they come into her parenting, particularly...

In this inspiring and heartfelt episode, hosts Rythea and Cara sit down with Vivek Patel, dear friend and renowned parenting coach, known for his non-coercive, collaborative parenting approach, and his 27-year-old daughter Veets! The conversation dives into the unique dynamics of their father-daughter relationship, exploring how Veets' upbringing has shaped her view of parents and children, friend...