Resource Corner

June Resource Corner

As we launch, we will provide monthly resources that are some of our favorites and from which you may find helpful sound bites, guidance, self-help recommendations, and food for thought. We will typically focus on a theme of the month and offer related print, digital, and media offerings. Beating JUNE gloom with some summer time fun.

SUmmer ideas:

Encourage Reading – Especially if the ‘back to school’ reading list is looming, get reading flowing by choosing a book for entertainment purposes and read the same book as your child! In this way, you can engage in discussion along the way. Modeling reading can help kids engage in reading on their own. Most certainly, your enthusiasm for summer reading can spark theirs!

Be Outdoors – Physical activity will induce ‘feel good’ brain chemicals that are important for mental health and a positive outlook. Movement will help promote overall physical health and sound sleep hygiene, and a dose of Vitamin D and fresh air can be invigorating. 

Consider Volunteering – There are many people in our local communities (from young children to the elderly) who are in need and who would be most grateful for a helping hand. Check out the California Volunteers website (www.californiavolunteers.ca.gov) or other places/activities in which your child expresses interest. Volunteering and/or leadership opportunities provide young people with an array of personal and professional skills. Youth-oriented summer camps, museums, animal shelters, and local libraries are also places that need extra help during the summer months. Consider becoming a Big Brother or Big Sister https://bbbsla.org/. 

Create some Structure – Routine is a way to provide direction and a sense of purpose. Make sure there are places your child ‘has to be’ in order to avoid spending all day on a screen. Less routine and purpose can breed risky behaviors, especially in teens. In fact, according to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, June and July are the peak months for teen drinking and drug use. 

Dive Deep into Areas of Interest – Find a class, join a team, explore something new! Keep it fun and engaging for your child. “Staycations” and day trips can also prove to be immensely rewarding and spontaneous!

Play!! – Keep you and your children’s brains alive over the summer by playing games and engaging in playful activities. Make up stories, plan a murder mystery night with costumes and characters, get messy, hit arts and crafts, play with squishy and slimy textures, build, make home movies, plant a garden, be imaginative with water activities, etc. 

Avoid the Summer Slide – It is often too easy to lie around and fall into a non-productive summer rut which can breed boredom, anxiety, and even depression. Social media breaks are highly recommended so that you and your child can relish being present and “in the moment.” Being immersed in the present will avoid rumination about past or future stressors.  

 

Summer resources to explore further:

 

 

May Resource Corner
Mother Month

As we launch, we will provide monthly resources that are some of our favorites and from which you may find helpful sound bites, guidance, self-help recommendations, and food for thought. We will typically focus on a theme of the month and offer related print, digital, and media offerings. This month is Mother Month and we know how important mothers are from providing for our children, nurturing them, helping them develop into independent beings, and modeling what healthy relationships look like.  Take a look at some Made for Mother resources below.

BOOKS:

• “Parenting from the Inside Out” by Daniel Siegel
• “How to Talk So Kids Will Listen & How to Listen So Kids Will Talk” by Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish.
• Raising Securely Attached Kids – Eli Harwood
• The Gifts of Imperfection – Brenee Brown

 

Self-care:

Don’t forget to care for yourself so you are able to care for others.

• Get a massage/visit a day-spa
• Take yourself out to lunch
• Get a facial

 
Self-care:

• “Rock Me to Sleep” by Elizabeth Akers Allen
• “Mother o’ Mine” by Rudyard Kipling
• “To My Mother” by Edgar Allan Poe
• “Mother” by Lola Ridge
• “To My Mother” by Robert Louis Stevenson
• A gentle hand, a guiding light, a love that knows no end, a mother’s heart, a tender sight, a constant, loyal friend.
• Life doesn’t come with a manual, it comes with a mother.

 

April Resource Corner
brain boosts

As we launch, we will provide monthly resources that are some of our favorites and from which you may find helpful sound bites, guidance, self-help recommendations, and food for thought. We will typically focus on a theme of the month and offer related print, digital, and media offerings. This month is Autism Awareness Month so here are a few resources that may be helpful. Please feel free to reach out to us with any specific questions and be brain wise and brain well!

For Young Adults and adults:

Uniquely Human: A Different Way of Seeing Autism by Barry Prizant

Unmasking Autism: Discovering the New Faces of Neurodiversity  by Devon Price

 

For Parents:

Autism as Context Blindness, by Perter Vermeulen, Ph.D.

Is This Autism, by Donna Henderson, Psy.D. and Sarah Wayland, Ph. D. with Jamell White, Ph.D., LCSW-C

For Younger Kids:

The Asperkid’s Secret Book of Social Rules, Jennifer Cook O’Toole

For Girls:

Asperger’s and Girls, by Tony Atwood, et. al. is a good resource for parents of girls with AS. Also access the following: https://www.attwoodandgarnettevents.com

Aspergers: Empowering Females with Asperger Syndrome, by Rudy Simone is written by a woman with AS and offers insight into the female side of this disorder

101 Tips for Parents of Girls with Autism, by Tony Lyons 

March Resource Corner
brain boosts

 Due to the very recent, and what will be long resounding community effects of the Los Angeles wildfires, we will begin with some Trauma and Mindfulness Suggestions for your self-care. Please feel free to reach out to us with any specific questions and be brain wise and brain well!

TRAUMA:

 

The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessel van der Kolk

 

 

This is Your Body on Trauma: Healing From Within—Nourishing Your Body and Mind on the Path to Trauma Recovery by Meg Bowman, MS

 

Recovery From Trauma, Addiction, or Both: Strategies for Finding Your Best Self by Lisa Najavits, Ph.D.

 

 

MINDFULNESS:

www.dandiegel.com

www.elishagoldstein.com

 

 

Mindfulness For Beginners, Jon Kabat-Zinn

 

A Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Workbook Bob Stahl, Elisha Goldstein, Saki Santorelli, Jon Kabat-Zinn

 

 

Mindful Parent Mindful Child, Susan Kaiser Greenland

 

 

For Teens:

 

You may also wish to explore groups and/or seminars offered in the practice of Mindful Awareness for your teens: (www.insightla.org;  www.mindfulkidsla.com; www.youthful-mindful-awareness-program.org Email: ymap.ucla@gmail.com Phone: 760-679-3506; www.mindfullivingla.org)

 

 

Mindfulness for Teen Anxiety, Christopher Willard, Ph.D.

 

 

And For Your Children:

 

The Mindful Child, Susan Kaiser Greenland

 

 

Mindful Games Books and Activity Cards, Susan Kaiser Greenland

 

 

www.susankaisergreenland.com (Mindful Awareness Practices)