Counselling Psychologist, Dr Susie Dawson, offers her five best tips on how to help prevent post-Halloween nightmares, in collaboration with Happy Beds.
The aftermath of Halloween and the new lockdown may mean that children will take longer to get to sleep, or wake up in the middle of the night with nightmares, due to watching too many scary films on the weekend, or even due to just hearing the…
Back in March when lockdown started, families had to adapt to new ways of living and working and they have since experienced an unprecedented 24-weeks of juggling childcare, home-schooling and work. The demand on parents and primary caregivers skyrocketed and feelings of stress and anxiety were compounded.
For many, managing the day-to-day needs of a family has required more energy and more…
I am glad I am not alone in believing that emotional intelligence should be the main skill to develop to do well in life. According to new research, six in 10 parents would rather their children grew up with strong social skills than high academic qualifications.A study of 2,000 mums and dads of children aged three-10 found 90 per cent consider empathy to be a key social attribute that their…
Most teenagers are keen to learn to drive as soon as possible. It gives them a little more freedom, but also more options when it comes to looking for work and higher education opportunities. As a parent, knowing that your child can drive safely can give you peace of mind, and make letting them go out into the world a little easier, as you know it will be easy for them to come home. But, learning…
Naming a human being is a huge responsibility and the pressure dramatically increases if it’s your own baby. In his play Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare famously wrote, ‘What’s in a name?’. Well, a lot! A person’s name is an important part of their identity.
If you’re expecting soon, there is a lot of stress that comes with becoming new parents. Are you struggling to find the…
What’s the recipe for successful parenting in thetwenty-first century? I have always tried to make sense of this without a definite answer. I often feel as a mum I have failed in my goal of having the perfect family, a caring child and a happy life according to what media showcases as happiness. But when children reach the teenage years, we are confronted with so many dilemmas and…
Being a parent of a child on the autism spectrum is tough enough and bedtime can be even more challenging than usual. It is quite common for autistic children to experience sleeping difficulties including falling and staying asleep as well as bedwetting.
It is essential for those parents to introduce sleeping routines and ensure they get the right amount of sleep so that they can do well in school…
With more time on our hands thanks to the lockdown, it’s understandable that many parents, like me, have started thinking about how little time we have left with our precious children.
After all, your kids will eventually leave home, either for university or to start their own family. When they do move out, you need to make sure that they have all the adult insight and skills they…
Throughout the lockdown and forced self-isolation, my musical skills have helped meovercome loneliness and de-motivation. I have recently spoken with Louise Gregg, Music Therapist from Nordoff Robbins, who has told me about a music therapy project in collaboration with TV programme The Clangers.
Q: Louise, tell us about this project you have been working on with Clangers…why is it…
The UK is currently on lockdown for at least another couple of weeks due to the worldwide outbreak of coronavirus. And with most of us spending more time than ever at home either on furlough or working remotely, it might feel like there’s never been a better time to introduce a new puppy to the family. After all, now you’re at home all day every day, you have all the time in the world to spend…