Encouragement or punishment?  Compliments or criticism? 🌿 Even in infancy, children are keen observers of their surroundings, absorbing every detail as they strive to understand how to interact with the world around them. This process of observation is crucial, as their sense of self begins to form through our reactions to their behavior. Each smile, frown, or word spoken in response to their actions contributes to a complex tapestry of their developing identity. They learn

“Calm down” rarely makes anyone calm. As a family therapist working with neurodiverse children's support, I’ve learned that recognizing early signs of a child’s distress is key. Every child communicates differently before a meltdown, and as parents, we become finely tuned to those signals. Some children grow unusually quiet, others try to please, and some show restlessness in their bodies. These are not “bad behaviors” - they are expressions of need. Through holistic child th