Parenting Classes

Do You Feel Like You Keep Hitting A Wall With Your Parenting?

Are you doubting your own parenting abilities and struggling to connect with your children? Do you feel like:

Your kids keep pulling away no matter how much you try to help them?
You’ve had to sacrifice your own needs for the sake of your kids?
You can’t catch a break from the stress of work, parenting, and all your other responsibilities?

Maybe you feel like you’ve done everything right and followed all the best parenting advice out there, but nothing seems to be working. Perhaps your kids are struggling academically or socially or you just can’t seem to connect with them, and it’s making you feel like you’ve struck out as a parent. You might have a neurodivergent child who sees the world very differently from you, creating challenges that you didn’t foresee when you decided to start a family.

Frustrated with your own abilities, you might have a hard time regulating your emotions and find yourself losing your cool more than usual. As a result, maybe you’re thinking it’s time to change things up and get some parenting coaching.

All The Time And Energy You Pour Into Your Kids’ Lives Could Leave Your Own Life Feeling Empty

It’s like your entire world revolves around your children—your self-worth, your emotional wellbeing, and even your physical health. While this dedication is a testament to how much you love your kids, it’s probably also led to burnout and exhaustion, leaving little space in your life to focus on your own needs.

Sometimes, you might not even be able to identify your needs—you’re so used to running yourself ragged for other people that it’s like you’ve lost touch with who you are.

Deep down, you may tell yourself that life is just supposed to be this difficult, but it doesn’t have to be. At The Middle Path, I offer online and in-person parenting courses for parents, guardians, and caregivers who are feeling burnt out, frustrated, and at a loss for answers. My program is designed to help parents find tools and strategies that allow them to connect with their children in deeper, more meaningful ways.

Questions about Parenting Classes?

If You Feel Like You’re Not Good Enough As A Parent, You’re Not Alone

There are many parents out there who feel the same way as you. After all, we live in a culture of comparison—our society is obsessed with keeping up with the Joneses, and this is especially true in the age of social media. All over Instagram, Facebook, and other platforms, we see depictions of the perfect family and parents who seem to have it all together.

Naturally, this culture of “compare and despair” has created a breeding ground for low self-esteem. We’re constantly judging ourselves against some socially-prescribed ideal, and this ideal isn’t always realistic. Nor is it always worth having—our culture tends to portray a narrow view of happiness, but the truth is that happiness looks different for different people. What’s best for one family isn’t necessarily best for another, so there is no one-size-fits-all approach to parenting.

Parenting Skills Are Something We Have To Learn, Not Something We’re Born With

Our society expects parents to be able to regulate their emotions and communicate flawlessly on their own, yet these are skills that have to be taught. No one is born with a magical toolbox of parenting skills at their disposal.

In many ways, the expectation that parents should automatically “know” all the answers is responsible for a lot of the guilt and shame around parenting. When kids are struggling, many parents are told that they’re not good enough or that they need to be doing more. But the truth is that children’s struggles often aren’t a reflection of how they’re raised—sometimes, kids just don’t fit into the mold we have created for them in our minds.

So despite what mommy blogs and internet advice columns might say, there is no “right” way to parent—there are simply different strategies that suit different situations. And in my parenting coaching program, you have the chance to try some of these strategies so that you can figure out what works for you.

My Parenting Classes Can Give You Valuable Tools For Connecting With Your Kids

Life is hard and so is parenting. You are not “broken” or “crazy” and you haven’t failed your children—you are doing the best you can, and I’m here to validate your efforts and encourage you to try new skills, tools, and approaches. My parenting workshops can help you investigate your beliefs about yourself and others, practice self-compassion, and gain valuable strategies for supporting your kids.

My approach is very relational—I’m not here to preach about the best parenting methods, but to help you feel better about yourself and more confident in what you do. My classes give you a chance to reflect on questions like: Where did I learn to parent? What habits did I inherit from my parents and what habits are uniquely mine? Why do some strategies work for my kids while others don’t? What should I do differently in order to relate to my kids better?

You’ll get to explore these questions with other parents, guardians, and caregivers who are also looking to improve their parenting skills and increase their sense of self-compassion. This creates an encouraging, empowering environment where it’s easy to feel less alone on your journey toward more effective parenting.

What To Expect In My Parent Coaching Workshop

My parenting workshop program consists of six classes that are each about an hour and a half long. You have the option to pursue in-person or virtual sessions depending on what’s most comfortable for you.

Once you are done with the six classes, you are welcome to continue working with me if you’d like. I offer both one-on-one coaching for parents as well as two-on-one sessions for those who prefer to come with their partner.

In our parenting classes, we’ll experiment with a wide range of skills related to communication, stress management, and emotional regulation. Using Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) as our guiding framework, we will explore how to:

Navigate difficult situations without making them worse
Avoid judging yourself when you make mistakes
Recognize and regulate difficult emotions as they arise
Challenge limiting thoughts and beliefs
Communicate in a way that’s persuasive, effective, and nonjudgmental

In this way, my DBT-inspired, skills-based approach to parenting can empower you to have a better relationship with your kids, your spouse, and yourself. You’ll learn to expand your understanding of what it means to parent effectively, and you’ll also learn to radically accept yourself as you work on shifting your understanding and relating to your kids in new and novel ways.

You May Have Some Concerns About My Parenting Coaching Classes…

I’ve read all the books, listened to all the teachers, and still nothing works for my kid. How will this be any different?

Sometimes we need an outsider to give us options other than the ones we’ve tried. After all, although many books and online resources contain valuable advice, they can’t give you skills that are directly tailored to your situation. In my parenting classes, I can help you experiment with different strategies until you find something that “clicks” and feels right for you and your kids.

How much experience do you have teaching parents?

I have been working in public education since 2004, coaching teachers and parents on how to connect with kids and adolescents on a deeper level. My focus has always been on helping people recognize their own capabilities and teaching them to exercise more self-compassion. Numerous parents and teachers have benefited from my work, and I’m confident that you will, too.

I don’t think I have it as bad as many other parents. Should I still show up?

This isn’t the pain Olympics. In fact, one of the main things we’ll discuss in my parenting classes is not comparing what’s been hard for us to what’s been hard for others. Your experience is real, valid, and deserving of support. Besides, even if some people seem to have it worse than you, wouldn’t you rather work on what’s frustrating you and learn how to improve your relationship with your children so you can enjoy your life as well?

Parenting Is Hard, And That’s Why I’m Here

Parenting can be a messy, complicated, trial-and-error process. But when you have someone supportive to walk with you on your journey, it becomes easier to apply new skills and achieve lasting change.

If you’re interested in trying my parenting workshop and boosting your parenting skills, you can use the contact form. I look forward to working with you!