The Self-Aware Parent Resolving Conflict and Building a Better Bond with Your Child

by Walfish, Fran

• ISBN13: 9780230102569
• ISBN10: 0230102565
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-12-07
• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Summary

A healthy relationship based on mutual trust is every parent's wish. The bond between infant and parent is a natural phenomenon, but as children reach their preteens and form their own personalities, fireworks between the child and parent can ensue. Drawing on 20 years of clinical experience and new theories on attachment, family therapist and consultant to Parents magazine Dr. Fran Walfish argues that parents need to distinguish their own personality types in order to make more informed decisions about how they interact and raise their own children. This step-by-step guide shows parents: how to recognize the strength and weaknesses of your parenting style and how it affects your child; the ways your style might clash with your child's nature, and how to negotiate a common ground; the vital importance of establishing trust with a preteen to better prepare for turbulent teen years. Written with warmth, authority, and wit, Dr. Walfish holds a gentle mirror up to parents and helps them understand themselves in order to create a closer relationship with their child.

Author Biography

Frances Walfish, Psy.D., MFT, is a leading child and family therapist in private practice. She is a consultant for Parenting Teens Resource Network, Parents magazine, Little Soul Productions, Los Angeles City Crisis Intervention Counselors, Momlogic.com and chairs the Governing Board of the Early Childhood Parenting Center, founded at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. She lives in Beverly Hills, CA.

Table of Contents

Foreword—Dr. Saul L. Brown * Introduction * The Importance of Knowing Yourself as a Parent * Separating Your Child from You * Managing Your Parental Worries and Concerns * The Helicopter Parent * Dealing with Your Parental Doubt * The Spaghetti Parent: Learning the Value of Saying No * Controlling Negativity in Your Communication * Managing Your Temper––Raising Awareness to Angry Feelings so Your Temper Doesn’t Creep Up on You * It’s About Your Child, Not You * The Importance of Bonding Solidly With Your Child * When One Parent Travels * Handling Special Circumstances * What to Do When the Chemistry Doesn’t Mix * Win-Win Parenting * Where Do I Fall as a Parent * Applying the Knowledge––The Process of Change