SFP 170: Overly-Responsive Parenting?

Is there such a thing as overly-responsive parenting? I believe so. Early in parenthood I found myself being a mindreader. It is important to be in tune with our kids’ needs, but we also need to give them the opportunity to step up and advocate for themselves.







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Full Episode Transcription:



Hello, it’s Denaye. Thank you so much for tuning in. This
is episode number 170. Today, we’re talking about a less is more approach to
parenting.



In our family and on Simple Families, I talk a lot about
responsive parenting. I don’t always call it that, but responsive parenting is
more or less being in tuned with our kids’ emotional and physical and social
needs. In many ways, that’s what ‘good’ parents do. They know their kids, they
know what their kids need, they’re in tune with them, but today we’re talking
about taking responsive parenting a little bit too far. I know that this has
happened to me before.



Last week on the podcast, we talked about too many toys.
This is a real problem, at least here in America, and I know what I’ve heard
from all of you from different parts of the world that you also experience this
problem, that problem of too much stuff. But not only do so many of us have a
problem with too much stuff, but we also have a problem with, more or less, too
much parenting, parenting, a little bit too intensely or maybe a lot bit
depending on the family. That’s what we’re talking about in today’s episode,
the idea that we do truly want to be responsive parents. We want to be in tuned
with the emotional and physical and social needs of our kids. However, we can
take it a little bit too far sometimes. We need to start recognizing when our
kids are actually better off with us stepping back a little bit and putting a
little bit more of the responsibility into their hands. But first I have a
little bit of an announcement to make.



Last week I talked about the fact that we are in the middle of the launch for the Masterclass, which starts on September 16th which is Monday. Enrollment is currently open, and I have actually just decided that this is going to be the very last round of the Masterclass. It has been such an amazing experience to work with hundreds of families throughout this process and I am so excited to bring in a new group this month.



However, it does really take a lot out of me. It’s an eight-week course and it’s really important to me to be heavily involved and present throughout the process, to be there to support you and to really get to know the families who are involved in this program with me. Many of you know that I have started to homeschool our kindergartner, so I’m going to be reallocating some of that time and energy back into our home. Now, nothing else is changing. The Mental Unload is staying, I’ll still be offering that a couple of times of the year. The podcast is still going to be weekly. The only thing that’s changing right now is the Masterclass is ending. This is the last time that we’re launching it.



This is going to be our last hurrah, and I think it’s
going to be a great one.