Episode 368: Helping kids manage big feelings.

16 Aug 2024 · 42 min
41:51

In this Winey Palooza podcast episode, host Rebecca Greene interviews Tricia Thornton, a licensed professional counselor, registered play therapist, and author of Blessing from Fear. The conversation begins with Tricia’s personal and professional background, including her education at Vanderbilt and Denver Seminary, her move to Nashville, and her experience as a school counselor and private practitioner. Tricia explains what play therapy is—using play as a child’s natural language to explore emotions—and emphasizes the central role of a safe, trusting relationship. She offers concrete parenting tools such as “mommy time‑outs,” grounding with the five senses, alone‑time/down‑time, and reward systems, stressing the importance of parents modeling self‑regulation. The dialogue moves to parental self‑awareness, identifying triggers, and using brief pauses to reset emotional states. Tricia discusses her book Blessing from Fear, introducing concepts of false selves, Erik Erikson’s psychosocial stages, faith‑development stages, and the practice of naming fears, distinguishing truth from lie, and using affirming language with children. The pair explore the therapist’s role as a bridge between home and school, describing collaboration with teachers, IEP/504 meetings, and consistent language across settings. Community‑specific stressors in Nashville—post‑school‑shooting trauma, rapid growth, and pressure from affluent private‑school culture—are highlighted. Common challenges families face include dysregulation, anxiety, anger, ADHD, perfectionism, and performance‑based pressure, with suggestions for grounding, mindfulness, and balanced expectations. The episode concludes with practical information on how listeners can find Tricia’s book, website, social media, and speaking services, followed by the usual podcast sign‑off and production credits.

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