Weekly thread: Your Favorite Parenting Books
What's gotten you through all the rough patches? Plus: Do time-outs make kids feel abandoned?
First, a quick reminder that I’m running a flash sale that ends at midnight ET tomorrow! With this sale you can get 20% off my newsletter FOREVER. This is actually the first time I’ve offered an “endless” discount, so if you’ve been on the fence, now’s an excellent time to jump on over!
Since many of our kids are or will soon be going through back-to-school transitions, and kid transitions are downright diabolical, I thought I’d crowdsource your favorite parenting books today.
What are the books you keep going back to again and again? I love SO MANY parenting books, but the two I go back to the most are these1:
Why Is My Child in Charge by Claire Lerner - Perfect for parents of younger kids, toddler through school-age. Totally changed the way I think about (and approach) power struggles.
The Emotional Lives of Teenagers by Lisa Damour - A wonderful resource for parents of tweens and teens who are wondering how to manage ALL THE FEELINGS.
I mean, of course, I recommend my book too — and believe it or not, I find myself going back to it A LOT to remind myself what the research says on various issues. An acquaintance made fun of me recently when she caught me reading my own book at the coffee shop. Hey, my brain is a sieve.
Please share your favorite books in the comments — and, if you’re so inclined, tell us why you adore them!
Do Time-Outs Make Kids Feel Abandoned, Ashamed and Rejected?
Welcome to this week’s
I’m commenting on this Instagram post from @raisedgood, which was posted a few days ago and now has more than 1,800 likes.
This multi-image post and its caption argue against the use of time-outs, saying that “sending a child into isolation can lead to feelings of abandonment, shame and rejection.” It claims that disciplinary strategies like time-outs undermine the parent-child relationship, and that they work “for all the wrong reasons.”
Here are my thoughts.