Episode 120: Parenting Your Strong-Willed Child with Wisdom and Grace—with Beth Read
It wasn’t too many months ago that I (Joanna) decided to give up on coloring my hair to cover up all the grey. But you want to know something funny? When I look in the mirror, I sometimes laugh to myself and wonder: How many of these grey hairs are from the stress of parenting our youngest daughter as a toddler? She was fearless, and one of her favorite phrases was, “I do it myself!”
We know we are not the only ones who have experienced a battle of wills with our children. Today, you may be feeling the constant push-and-pull with your child; your days might feel tired and stressful, and it’s becoming harder and harder to feel joy in your parenting.
If you’re craving some peace and guidance in your home today, we are happy to introduce our guest, Beth Read. Beth is a mom of four who loves coming alongside other parents to remind them that God’s grace shows up in the messiest, hardest moments. Beth is also the founder of HeartWriters and the creator of Fruit of the Family, a fun, activity-based resource to help you disciple your children and bond as a family.
In this episode, Beth shares:
- Characteristics of many strong-willed children
- What to do when you feel like you are failing as a parent
- The Seven C’s for relating better to your child
- And much more!
We hope you enjoy this conversation!
Links:
- Fruit of the Family activity set and Book Bundle
- Connect with Beth on her website, Facebook, or Instagram
Our Takeaways:
1) Don’t take it personally. It’s easy to feel like you are a failure or that you don’t measure up as a parent. However, that isn’t the case! Strong-willed children are good at pushing our buttons, and it’s often the case that traditional parenting methods just don’t work as well with them. It’s important to take the time to learn your triggers in order to maintain emotional regulation as you parent your strong-willed child.
2) Learn how to relate to your child. When we encounter challenging behaviors with our children, it’s easy to get frustrated with what they’re showing on the outside. But in these moments, let’s ask ourselves what we can do to address the needs underlying their actions. This could be any number of things, from helping them gain a sense of control, to offering them more choices, or even just providing predictability in their schedule. It’s important that we learn how to relate to our strong-willed child and experiment with different parenting methods to find strategies that resonate well with them. Beth shared her “Seven C’s for Relating to Strong-Willed Children” in our conversation, which is a great place to start!
3) Celebrate your child daily. It’s easy to fall into a pattern of nitpicking and only noticing the negatives about your child. Over time, this can begin to wear on their self-image and also how you view them. As parents, it’s just as important to notice and celebrate the things we like about our children as it is to disciple and help shape their minds and hearts. Regularly making it a priority to celebrate your child’s uniqueness and accomplishments will encourage them and you!
Meet Our Guest
Beth Read is the founder of HeartWriters, a ministry that supports families in the messy, grace-filled work of raising kids who love and live like Jesus. She is also the creator of Fruit of the Family which provides fun, hands-on resources for families to learn how to live out the fruit of the Spirit in everyday life. Beth loves coming alongside other parents to remind them that God’s grace shows up in the messiest, hardest moments. She is a mom to four children, two of which are strong-willed.
