Beyond Parenting Advice

This book provides pregnant women and new parents with evidence-based information on pregnancy and parenting. Most parenting books advise pregnant women or new parents what to do and, at best, defend that advice by citing recommendations from highly selected “experts” or equally selective “studies.” Some parents prefer an advice book, but an increasing number do not trust the advice they receive unless they are convinced of its scientific backing. Dr. Kramer does not tell pregnant women or new parents what they should or should not do. Instead, he focuses on controversial decision choices for which recommendations and practices differ substantially. He systematically reviews and synthesizes the available scientific evidence bearing on those choices, summarizes the strengths and weaknesses of that evidence, and translates the summaries in a way that encourages parents to make their own informed decisions. He summarizes the risks and benefits of different decision options, as well as the degree of certainty around them. The risks and benefits then need to be valued by the individual parent and balanced against the effort and financial costs incurred by the decision. Beyond Parenting Advice does not cover every conceivable topic relevant to pregnancy, infancy, and childhood. Instead, it focuses on key controversial areas with abundant but conflicting advice and information. The book’s contents are organized into four sections: an initial section comprising two introductory chapters and one section each devoted to topics concerning pregnancy, infancy/toddlerhood, and childhood/adolescence. Each topic is limited to one chapter. The two introductory chapters are short but dense. They are essential, however, to understand the scientific concepts and vocabulary used in the evidence review of each topic area. After reading the two initial chapters, the rest of the book can actually be used like an encyclopedia. In other words, the reader should be able to read and understand any later chapter in the book, or even a short section from any chapter. Despite the chronological order of pregnancy and the aging child, the topic chapters in sections 2-4 could have been written, and can be read, in any order. An initial Reference Tools section provides a glossary and reproduces a diagram and two tables that define unfamiliar words and concepts. Armed with the information provided in this book, different parents will make different decisions. But those decisions will be informed decisions—not blind obedience to a book, blog, health provider, friend, family, or public health authority. Moreover, the skills that parents acquire in reading this book will help them throughout their lives in critically evaluating new information relevant to health, science, and technology.

This book provides pregnant women and new parents with evidence-based information on pregnancy and parenting. Most parenting books advise pregnant women or new parents what to do and, at best, defend that advice by citing recommendations from highly selected "experts" or equally selective "studies." Some parents prefer an advice book, but an increasing number do not trust the advice they receive unless they are convinced of its scientific backing. Dr. Kramer does not tell pregnant women or new parents what they should or should not do. Instead, he focuses on controversial decision choices for which recommendations and practices differ substantially. He systematically reviews and synthesizes the available scientific evidence bearing on those choices, summarizes the strengths and weaknesses of that evidence, and translates the summaries in a way that encourages parents to make their own informed decisions. He summarizes the risks and benefits of different decision options, as well as the degree of certainty around them. The risks and benefits then need to be valued by the individual parent and balanced against the effort and financial costs incurred by the decision. Beyond Parenting Advice does not cover every conceivable topic relevant to pregnancy, infancy, and childhood. Instead, it focuses on key controversial areas with abundant but conflicting advice and information. The book's contents are organized into four sections: an initial section comprising two introductory chapters and one section each devoted to topics concerning pregnancy, infancy/toddlerhood, and childhood/adolescence. Each topic is limited to one chapter. The two introductory chapters are short but dense. They are essential, however, to understand the scientific concepts and vocabulary used in the evidence review of each topic area. After reading the two initial chapters, the rest of the book can actually be used like an encyclopedia. In other words, the reader should be able to read and understand any later chapter in the book, or even a short section from any chapter. Despite the chronological order of pregnancy and the aging child, the topic chapters in sections 2-4 could have been written, and can be read, in any order. An initial Reference Tools section provides a glossary and reproduces a diagram and two tables that define unfamiliar words and concepts. Armed with the information provided in this book, different parents will make different decisions. But those decisions will be informed decisions-not blind obedience to a book, blog, health provider, friend, family, or public health authority. Moreover, the skills that parents acquire in reading this book will help them throughout their lives in critically evaluating new information relevant to health, science, and technology. .

A real-world guide to Attachment Parenting from the Big Bang Theory actress, neuroscientist, and mother Mayim Bialik—a book hailed by Dr. William Sears as “delightful” and by Ricki Lake as “a fantastic guide to birth and parenting that is packed with invaluable wisdom.” Mayim Bialik was the child star of the popular 1990s TV sitcom Blossom, but she definitely didn’t follow the typical child-star trajectory. Instead, Mayim got her PhD in neuroscience from UCLA, married her college sweetheart, and had two kids. Mayim then did what many new moms do—she read a lot of books, talked with other parents, and she soon started questioning a lot of the conventional wisdom she heard about the “right” way to raise a child. That’s when she turned to Attachment Parenting, a philosophy and lifestyle popularized by well-known physicians like Dr. William Sears and Dr. Jay Gordon. To Mayim, Attachment Parenting’s natural, child-led approach not only felt right emotionally, it made sense intellectually and instinctually. She found that when she followed her intuition and relaxed into her role as a mother instead of following some rigid parenting script, both she and her children thrived. Taking into account her experience as a mother (and her scientific background), Mayim presents the major tenets of Attachment Parenting, including: Baby wearing:How to “wear” your baby in a sling or a wrap to foster a closer bond with your child—it’s possible even for mamas with bad backs (and with big babies)! Breastfeeding:Learn how to listen to your baby’s cues rather than sticking to a rigid schedule—and why people on airplanes love a nursing mother! Gentle discipline:How to get your child to behave without yelling, threats, or time-outs—it really is possible. Co-sleeping:How to avoid “sleep training” and get a great night’s sleep for the whole family. Without the pretense and luxuries typical of so many Hollywood actors and parents, Mayim describes the beauty, simplicity, and purposefulness of Attachment Parenting, and how it’s become the guiding principle for her family. Much more than a simple how-to parenting guide, Beyond the Sling shows us that the core principles underlying Attachment Parenting are universal and can be appreciated no matter how you decide to raise your child.

A guide that helps parents focus on their children's unique strengths and inclinations rather than on gendered stereotypes to more effectively bring out the best in their individual children, for parents of infants to middle schoolers. Reliance on Gendered Stereotypes Negatively Impacts Kids Studies on gender and child development show that, on average, parents talk less to baby boys and are less likely to use numbers when speaking to little girls. Without meaning to, we constantly color-code children, segregating them by gender based on their presumed interests. Our social dependence on these norms has far-reaching effects, such as leading girls to dislike math or increasing aggression in boys. In this practical guide, developmental psychologist (and mother of two) Christia Spears Brown uses science-based research to show how over-dependence on gender can limit kids, making it harder for them to develop into unique individuals. With a humorous, fresh, and accessible perspective, Parenting Beyond Pink & Blueaddresses all the issues that contemporary parents should consider—from gender-segregated birthday parties and schools to sports, sexualization, and emotional intelligence. This guide empowers parents to help kids break out of pink and blue boxes to become their authentic selves.

"Gathering the perspectives of educators and psychologists, as well as wisdom from everyday parents, Parenting Beyond Belief offers insights and advice on a wide range of topics including instilling values, finding meaning and purpose, navigating holidays, coping with loss, finding community without religion, and more. The second edition of this secular parenting bestseller brings back reflections from such celebrated freethinkers as Richard Dawkins and Julia Sweeney, and adds new voices including journalist Wendy Thomas Russell, essayist Katherine Ozment, sociologist Phil Zuckerman, and many others" --

Parenting teens is one of the most challenging seasons of parenting, isn’t it? While this can be a difficult time of transition for parents and teens, there is hope. You can parent well and build a stronger relationship even through the teen years. After 30 years of parenting five children and 20 years of working with teens, Connie Albers has witnessed the negative impact of well-intentioned but misguided parenting styles, all focused on managing teens rather than guiding them. But through learning to focus on the hearts of your teens, you can avoid those pitfalls and build relationships that last beyond the transition years as you intentionally learn about, connect with, and listen to your teens. In a world filled with distractions and devices, it is possible to guide their hearts and remain the primary influence in their lives. In Parenting beyond the Rules, you will discover how to raise a teen according to his or her strengths, talents, and personality type, as these things equip teens to manage life. Join Connie Albers in discovering practical solutions for every parent trying to raise a responsible, godly teenager.

The covers of such magazines as Time and Newsweek have described parents as living in “mayhem” and “madness” with their children. TV’s Supernanny regularly captures kids wildly, unbelievably out of control. How did our families get to such a state? Child psychologist Dr. Beth Grosshans has the answer. And mothers and fathers everywhere are listening. In what is sure to become a much-discussed blockbuster, Dr. Grosshans reveals why she believes nearly a half-century of parenting advice—with its emphasis on talking, exalting children’s self-esteem, and time-outs—is largely to blame for today’s lack of discipline. Her innovative ideas and techniques challenge this prevailing culture, proving that power and authority are as essential as love and good intentions to effective parenting. She persuasively explains why kids can only grow up healthy and strong when firmly led by their parents’ experience and better judgment, and provides a clear, easy five step program to follow. She enables parents to look at themselves clearly and identify their child-rearing style; they are often shocked to discover how their own behavior has inadvertently caused an imbalance in the family’s structure. Reading Beyond Time-Out is akin to sitting with Dr. Grosshans in her clinical office—and her core truths about healthy parent-child relationships are timeless.

NATIONAL BESTSELLER From a leading child psychologist comes this groundbreaking new understanding of children’s behavior, offering insight and strategies to support both parents and children. Nominated for Malcolm Gladwell, Susan Cain, Adam Grant, and Daniel H. Pink's Next Big Idea Club Over her decades as a clinical psychologist, Dr. Mona Delahooke has routinely counseled distraught parents who struggle to manage their children’s challenging, sometimes oppositional behaviors. These families are understandably focused on correcting or improving a child’s lack of compliance, emotional outbursts, tantrums, and other “out of control” behavior. But, as she has shared with these families, a perspective shift is needed. Behavior, no matter how challenging, is not the problem but a symptom; a clue about what is happening in a child’s unique physiologic makeup. In Brain-Body Parenting, Dr. Delahooke offers a radical new approach to parenting based on her clinical experience as well as the most recent research in neuroscience and child psychology. Instead of a “top-down” approach to behavior that focuses on the thinking brain, she calls for a “bottom-up” approach that considers the essential role of the entire nervous system, which produces children’s feelings and behaviors. When we begin to understand the biology beneath the behavior, suggests Dr. Delahooke, we give our children the resources they need to grow and thrive—and we give ourselves the gift of a happier, more connected relationship with them. Brain-Body Parenting empowers parents with tools to help their children develop self-regulation skills while also encouraging parental self-care, which is crucial for parents to have the capacity to provide the essential “co-regulation” children need. When parents shift from trying to secure compliance to supporting connection and balance in the body and mind, they unlock a deeper understanding of their child, encouraging calmer behavior, more harmonious family dynamics, and increased resilience.