Janice is a mother to a 4 and a half year old boy and a 2 and a half year old girl. As a busy working mom she struggles with navigating how to practice “gentle parenting”. She finds herself trying to choose between disciplining or coddling her son when he acts out. She asks herself questions like “am I coddling too much?” and “are they taking advantage of me and acting out?”. She does her best to respect her son’s big feelings but can’t help but be overwhelmed whenever he acts out and throws a tantrum. Today we talk about what it truly means when kids “act out” and how to approach them when this happens. We talk about how to practice respectful and kind communication with a specific tone rather than coddling and the importance of validating feelings. We also talk about how to pre-plan for triggering situations that might lead to tantrums and how to slow down and be particularly thoughtful about their schedules and busy lives.