Active & Connected Families Virginia Family Therapy

Today we’re starting a series on our greatest hits and the tips and strategies we as therapists talk to parents the most about. We say the same things over and over again because so many of us struggle with the same things and I'm going to share them with you during the upcoming weeks!
 
In this rewind episode, Sarah Lewis from The Lewis Practice, Caroline and I talk about how and why parents should be talking to their kids about their OWN feelings. This is probably contrary to what you see on Instagram or have heard before, which is that we should hold it together to take care of our kids’ feelings. And that’s true. But it’s equally true that we should be talking about our own feelings. Doing this will not only increase empathy and problem-solving for our kids, but we as adults will also feel closer to our kids and so much better in general.
 
In this episode on sharing your feelings with your kids, we cover:
Why it’s important to talk to your kids about your own feelings; What happens when we don’t talk about our feelings; How to discuss your own feelings with your kids: what wording to use, the best timing, etc.; Tips on what not to do; And so much more!  
We always love hearing from you, so don’t be shy, come over to our Facebook or Instagram and let us know what you thought about today’s episode!
 
Ps. Do you love listening to our podcast? It would mean the absolute world to us if you could leave a review on Apple Podcasts. This will help our show so we can help more parents and families feel more active and connected in their lives. You can leave a review by clicking here, scrolling to the bottom, tapping to leave a star rating and then write your review. Thanks so much!
 
And if you haven’t done so yet, make sure to subscribe to our show so you don’t miss any of our future episodes!
 
More info? You can find the full show notes, links and resources over at:
https://virginiafamilytherapy.com/rewind-parents-have-feelings-too/

Let’s talk about setting boundaries today. Because I know setting boundaries is something so many people, especially women, struggle with. And I’m certainly one of them.
Today’s guest Meg Allan Cole is an expert in the field of going from people pleaser to setting healthy boundaries and I’m so excited to share her insights with you. She struggled with a chronic illness for the last 5-10 years and woke up and figured out what her priorities in life are. She realized that in order to honor them she had to learn to say no. And so she did.
We can all learn how to set healthy boundaries in order to be the person we want to be. So let’s dive and start learning how to do this!
In this episode on setting healthy boundaries, we cover:
Historical and cultural reasons why we people-please; Acknowledging your own boundaries; Strategies & specific examples on how to set healthy boundaries; How the patriarchy taught women to apologize all the time and how this plays into people-pleasing and setting healthy boundaries; Meditation; And so much more! We always love hearing from you, so don’t be shy, come over to our Facebook or Instagram and let us know what you thought about today’s episode!
Ps. Do you love listening to our podcast? It would mean the absolute world to us if you could leave a review on Apple Podcasts. This will help our show so we can help more parents and families feel more active and connected in their lives. You can leave a review by clicking here, scrolling to the bottom, tapping to leave a star rating and then write your review. Thanks so much!
And if you haven’t done so yet, make sure to subscribe to our show so you don’t miss any of our future episodes!
More info? You can find the full show notes, links and resources over at:
https://virginiafamilytherapy.com/setting-healhty-boundaries/
 

Let's talk about the importance of trying new things in your 40s and reflect on how doing so can really change our lives!
Karen Murray’s story is an incredible example of how trying something new in your 40s can change your life. She ran her first marathon at the age of 46. Now, ten years later, she’s run 314 of them!
Her story shows us that just a little bit of courage in taking a small step can truly make us happier and healthier and give our life meaning as we get older.
In this episode on trying new things in your 40s, we discuss:
Why it's so important to start something new in your 40s; Karen’s story of how she did this and how it changed her life; What inspired her to pick up running in her mid-40s; How she had the courage to DO IT; How having something new changed her life; And more! We always love hearing from you, so don’t be shy, come over to our Facebook or Instagram and let us know what you thought about today’s episode!
Ps. Do you love listening to our podcast? It would mean the absolute world to us if you could leave a review on Apple Podcasts. This will help our show so we can help more parents and families feel more active and connected in their lives. You can leave a review by clicking here, scrolling to the bottom, tapping to leave a star rating and then write your review. Thanks so much!
And if you haven’t done so yet, make sure to subscribe to our show so you don’t miss any of our future episodes!
More info? You can find the full show notes, links and resources over at:
https://virginiafamilytherapy.com/trying-new-things-in-your-40s/

Parents are still experiencing burnout after the pandemic. For those of you who are in your 40’s, like me, this burnout is coinciding with a very natural increase in depression that hits most of us around this age. This shows how important it is for us to be proactive about how we’re managing our stress!
Today, I’m talking to Dr. Erik Korem, who’s a sports scientist, entrepreneur, podcast host of The Blueprint, and father of three. We’ll discuss what parents can learn from athletes about managing stress and burnout and how we can actually build our capacity to adapt to stress. I can’t wait for you to learn more from him in today’s episode!
In this episode on parental burnout and managing stress, we cover:
What happens physiologically with burnout and stress; Why so many people are experiencing burnout right now; What happens biologically when we experience stress; Living closer to our values; The 5 pillars to build the capacity to adapt to more stress; And more! We always love hearing from you, so don’t be shy, come over to our Facebook or Instagram and let us know what you thought about today’s episode!
Ps. Do you love listening to our podcast? It would mean the absolute world to us if you could leave a review on Apple Podcasts. This will help our show so we can help more parents and families feel more active and connected in their lives. You can leave a review by clicking here, scrolling to the bottom, tapping to leave a star rating and then write your review. Thanks so much!
And if you haven’t done so yet, make sure to subscribe to our show so you don’t miss any of our future episodes!
More info? You can find the full show notes, links and resources over at:
 https://virginiafamilytherapy.com/parental-burnout-managing-stress/

Raising feminist men is now more important than ever. I want my boys to push back against patriarchy AND at the same time feel proud of who they are as boys. If you are like me, and you are raising boys and identify as a feminist, this episode is for you!
I’ll start this episode by sharing some tips I’ve been mulling over for the past few years. Then, I’ll be joined by Erin Spahr, LCPC, to talk more about what it means to raise boys as a feminist. Erin’s mission is to challenge the oppressive societal norms that disempower moms. She’s full of deep insights she brings to the table during the episode, so let’s dive in!
In this episode on raising boys as a feminist, we discuss:
What does it mean to Erin to be a feminist and how does this show up in her parenting?; Starting the conversation with your boys; Helping them observe what they see in the world around them; How to talk to your kids about specific topics like toxic masculinity; The role fathers play in raising feminist boys; And so much more! We always love hearing from you, so don’t be shy, come over to our Facebook or Instagram and let us know what you thought about today’s episode!
Ps. Do you love listening to our podcast? It would mean the absolute world to us if you could leave a review on Apple Podcasts. This will help our show so we can help more parents and families feel more active and connected in their lives. You can leave a review by clicking here, scrolling to the bottom, tapping to leave a star rating and then write your review. Thanks so much!
And if you haven’t done so yet, make sure to subscribe to our show so you don’t miss any of our future episodes!
More info? You can find the full show notes, links and resources over at:
 https://virginiafamilytherapy.com/raising-boys-as-a-feminist/
 

Now that we have a better understanding of why it is so hard for boys to talk about feelings, let’s dive into what we can do to help our boys talk about their emotions.
I’m continuing the conversation with Matt Browning, who shares actionable strategies for helping our boys verbally express their feelings more easily. So how do we go about this? What are some actionable tactics to help our boys? And when is actually the right time to talk about this? Matt has all the answers in today’s episode.
In this episode on helping boys talk about feelings, we discuss:
Actionable strategies for helping boys talk about feelings; The importance of education around emotions and how to go about it; Why it's helpful to keep it general at first instead of going personal right away; Leaning into the resistance you feel from your kid instead of going against it; When’s the right time to talk about feelings?; And so much more! We always love hearing from you, so don’t be shy, come over to our Facebook or Instagram and let us know what you thought about today’s episode!
Ps. Do you love listening to our podcast? It would mean the absolute world to us if you could leave a review on Apple Podcasts. This will help our show so we can help more parents and families feel more active and connected in their lives. You can leave a review by clicking here, scrolling to the bottom, tapping to leave a star rating and then write your review. Thanks so much!
And if you haven’t done so yet, make sure to subscribe to our show so you don’t miss any of our future episodes!
More info? You can find the full show notes, links and resources over at:
https://virginiafamilytherapy.com/helping-boys-talk-about-feelings/