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"I Just Want My Kids to Be Happy" There is a quiet story many women carry, a story that sounds responsible, loving, selfless. A voice that says: "My family comes first." And of course, there is beauty in devotion, and there is also a hidden cost when devotion slowly becomes self-abandonment. Something I have noticed over and over again—in my own life, in conversations with women, and in my work with families—is how easy it is for motherhood to become our entire identity. Some

A major new report published in The Lancet this week is once again sounding the alarm on the state of youth mental health around the world. The report highlights what many parents, educators, therapists, and families are already witnessing firsthand: the mental health of adolescents and young adults has been declining globally over the past two decades. Rates of anxiety, depression, emotional distress, loneliness, self-harm, and psychological overwhelm continue to rise among

A story I see more often than we talk about Recently, a family was referred to me about their 5-year-old kid. The concerns sounded familiar: “She doesn’t focus.”, “She doesn’t listen.”, "She doesn't stop!", “She’s disruptive.”, “We’re constantly being called by the school.” The parents were exhausted, the school was frustrated and the child was slowly being defined by her behavior. Her bad behavior. The family came in hoping for something very specific: clear strategies to ma

Over the years, sitting with families in session, I’ve heard the same question in many different forms: “Why is my child struggling so much?” Sometimes it’s anxiety. Sometimes mood swings. Sometimes shutdown. Sometimes explosive behavior that feels like it comes out of nowhere. Most families today are doing everything they know to do. They are in therapy. They are consulting psychiatrists. They are working with behavioral specialists. They are trying school accommodations. Th

Today’s teens are growing up in a world that moves fast, expects a lot, and rarely pauses to breathe. Many of them look “fine” on the outside while feeling overwhelmed, misunderstood, or emotionally flooded on the inside. What they often need most isn’t advice—it’s felt safety . At Mindful Art Practices (MAP), we understand emotional resilience not as toughness or independence, but as the capacity to stay connected—to oneself and to others—during moments of stress . Resilienc

Anxiety rarely lives in just one person. It shows up at the dinner table, in rushed mornings, in bedtime struggles, in short tempers and long silences. Families often feel like they are “walking on eggshells,” trying to manage emotions without fully understanding what’s happening beneath the surface. For parents and caregivers, this can feel exhausting and isolating—especially when everyone is doing their best. At Mindful Art Practices (MAP), we view family anxiety not as a p

A Relational, Nervous-System-Informed Approach Family life is rarely linear or neat. It’s a living system—shaped by emotions, expectations, stress, love, history, and the very human attempt to do our best. When challenges arise—big emotions, recurring conflicts, disconnection, power struggles—many parents feel they’re supposed to figure it out alone. They read the books, follow the advice, try harder… and still feel stuck. Family coaching offers something different. Not judgm