Calm Kids in Bathurst, New South Wales | Medical and health

Calm Kids

Locality: Bathurst, New South Wales

Phone: +61 2 6338 2608

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23.01.2022 It's so easy to emotionally over react as parents when our children are misbehaving. However, when we contemplate our thoughts and feelings later, we often real...ise that we didn't react to what happened, but more so to our mood or the subtle pressure we felt in association to what happened. Because, unconsciously (often time and time again) we have asked ourselves questions like, 'Am I doing a good enough job?", "What if I fail as a parent?". And it's normal to have these questions. It's also normal to feel the pressure of responsibility that comes with raising children. However, emotional reactivity can cause a lot of extra grief in our lives and the lives of those around us. A mindfulness practice allows us to connect with what we are feeling and thinking on a deeper level. Mindfulness brings us insight, or awareness to aid us in controlling our emotional reactivity. It's a moment to moment practice of continuously checking in... and learn to understand how our beliefs can unconsciously drive our behaviour. Once we come to terms with what's really happening within us, it becomes easier to parent from a space of compassion for ourselves and our children. #mindfulparenting See more

23.01.2022 This is a lovely activity to do with your children for New Years - we can help them reflect on the year that was 2020 in a more positive light through gratitude, and bring some closure to what has certainly been a challenging year. #newyearactivity #gratitude #Farewell2020 #bathurst #calmkids

21.01.2022 Day 5 of the Calm Kids Mindfulness Course: Gratitude On this final day of the course, we talked about the significant impact on our overall wellbeing of the simple act of expressing gratitude. Just writing 3 things you are grateful for each evening before going to sleep, or first thing each morning, has been shown to reverse our mind’s focus on what we don’t have, and refocus it on what we do have. This reversal can help to unhook us from some negative thought patterns (such... as comparing ourselves to those around us) and improves how we see our world. We finished our course by quietly creating some nature mandalas. Mandalas are a symbol of personal growth, and these young people have spent a week looking inwards and gathering new information to support them into the future. I would like to thank each and every one of these young adults. It has been an absolute pleasure getting to know them, being able to support them in understanding their own minds, and developing strategies to support their overall health and wellbeing. #gratitude #mandala #healthandwellbeing #teenhealth #preteen #learningforlife #calmkids #mindfulness #bathurst #bathurstbusinesscentre

20.01.2022 Day 3 of the Calm Kids Mindfulness Course: Empathy, Kindness & Self-Compassion Today our older group learned about empathy through an activity involving pasta and plates. Empathy is not an easy concept to grasp, but these young people were able to articulate it really well after participating in the demonstration. We also talked about the importance of self-compassion and kindness. This is an age when our ‘inner critic’ can really start to have an impact on our health and we...llbeing. It’s important to notice when we are judging ourselves and others. Our younger group talked about the way that we can change the world by sharing kindness and starting a ‘pay it forward’ system. We finished both sessions by painting a kindness rock each and planning some Random Acts of Kindness to surprise our friends and family with. #kindness #empathy #selfcompassion #preteens #teens #RandomActsofKindness #calmkids #bathurstbusinesscentre #bathurst #PayItForward

18.01.2022 Day 1 of the Calm Kids Mindfulness Course: Understanding Anxiety and My Brain (12-16 yr old group) Today we used play dough to demonstrate the ‘snowball effect’ that can happen when we feel anxious (although the same model can apply to other emotions such as anger). The yellow layer represents the feeling that we have around an issue or challenge that we are facing (eg. I have a big test coming up on Friday and I’m worrying about failing it). The red layer represents a behav...iour that we attach to that feeling (eg. I worry so much about it that I end up not sleeping well). The blue layer represents a consequence (natural or enforced) that occurs because of the red layer behaviour (eg. I’m tired from not sleeping so I don’t prepare properly for the test). The green layer represents another consequence that may arise from the blue level behaviour (eg. I feel so tired and I haven’t prepared for the test, so it’s likely I will fail it). The objective this activity is to demonstrate the importance of being able to notice, identify and express our feelings in a healthy and mindful way. When we are unable to do this, things ‘snowball’! #mindfulness #anxiety #preteens #teens #bathurstbusinesscentre #calmkids #bathurst

16.01.2022 I would personally like to thank all of the people who have helped Calm Kids get started in Bathurst this year... to my family and friends who have been so supportive and believed in me, to Jenn, Kelly and Sonya from the Bathurst Business Centre for all of their admin support and friendship, to the parents who have placed their trust in me to support their children through their emotional journeys. Finally.... to the children who come and spend time at Calm Kids every week...... your bravery, your openness and your willingness to learn new things about your mind, your emotions and life in general leaves me in awe each week. I am so grateful Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and a 2021 filled with gratitude, compassion, empathy and mindfulness. Danielle #christmas #2021 #gratitude #mindfulness #compassion #empathy #calmkids #bathurstbusinesscentre #bathurst #newbusiness #friendsandfamily See more

15.01.2022 These tips are very relevant

09.01.2022 Day 5 of the Calm Kids Mindfulness Course: Gratitude and Calming Boxes (7-9 year group) Today was the final day of our course. We created a Calming Box each to take home and remind us of the strategies and concepts we have learned this week. Our Calming Boxes contained: * our kindness rocks - to remind us to be kind to ourselves and others * a worry doll - to remind us to talk to somebody we trust when we are feeling anxious or overwhelmed ... * an eraser - to remind us that it is ok to make mistakes. Mistakes help us learn. * Playdough - to use a sensory experience to calm us when we are feeling anxious * a feather - to remind us to breathe the special 456 Breath to switch on our body’s relaxation system * an anchor - to remind us that our breath is like an anchor when we feel like we are are a boat in a storm * a bouncy ball - to remind us how resilient we are and that we can bounce back from setbacks I have had so much fun this week with these very special people. Their smiles brought joy to the group every day. I am so grateful for their presence. #calmkids #mindfulness #gratitude #calmingboxes #bathurst #bathurstbusinesscentre #smiles

05.01.2022 Calm Kids Mindful Parenting Series #2 Self-regulation: one of the greatest gifts we can give our children is the ability to self-regulate their emotions. Self-regulation is the ability to understand and manage your behaviour, as well as your reactions to feelings and things happening around you.... This includes being able to: * regulate reactions to emotions like anger, frustration or excitement * calm down after an exciting or upsetting experience * focus on a task * control impulses * learn social behaviour that helps you develop friendships and get along with other people Self-regulation is important because it helps your child to learn more effectively in school, behave in socially acceptable ways which help develop deeper level friendships, become more independent, develop resilience, and manage stressful situations in a healthy way. As parents, the most effective way for us to teach emotional regulation skills is by modelling this. We need to co-regulate for our children until they have their own skills of emotional regulation. Think of yourself as the sky, and all of your experiences and emotions are like the weather. The weather will pass. The weather will change. The weather will be fine and sunny one day, and rainy and stormy the next. But the sky - it is steady and constant. It never leaves. So, how do we model this for our children? * share with our children healthy ways of expressing emotion - using appropriate words and actions eg. I’m feeling really frustrated right now that I can’t get this work, so I’m going to take a few deep breaths and come back to it, or I’m feeling really sad right now, I need to sit and take a few moments of self-care. * acknowledge when your child has used appropriate words or actions to calm or soothe themselves eg. I really liked the way you told me that you’re feeling angry right now, or I noticed that you walked away when you were feeling frustrated with your sister. * allow children to express all emotions - we have a habit in our society of labelling emotions as ‘good’ or ‘bad’. All emotions are valid and relevant to a child at the time. If we label an emotion as ‘bad’, then the child will attach that emotion to feeling shame and guilt - two things that will never result in a positive outcome. As parents, we don’t always get this right because we can be so easily triggered. However, if we can start working on our own skills of emotional regulation, we then have the ability to be our child’s co-regulator and help them in their journey of emotional regulation. #emotionalregulation #coregulation #parenting #children #mentalhealth #calmkids #bathurst #bathurstbusinesscentre

05.01.2022 Day 2 of the Calm Kids Mindfulness Course: Understanding our Thoughts and Calming our Minds (12-16 yr session) Today we made Calming Jars. Calming Jars are a wonderful metaphor for explaining how chaotic our mind can be when we are feeling anxious or stressed. The glitter represents our thoughts and when we shake the jar we can see what happens in our mind when we feel overwhelmed. When we let the jar sit still for awhile (just like we do in a mindfulness meditation or activ...ity) the glitter settles - representing the calmer mind. There were many laughs today as these wonderful young people got to know each other better whilst sharing an interesting activity. I am so grateful for their presence. #mindfulness #calmkids #bathurst #glitterjar #bathurstbusinesscentre #calmingthemind #preteens #teens

04.01.2022 There are only a couple of places left available for the Calm Kids Mindfulness School Holiday Course. This course is now only running once (18th - 22nd January) and is almost fully booked. I'd love to be able to support your child in developing skills and strategies to manage their anxiety, as well as learning about emotional wellbeing in general. Working on these skills prior to school returning is the perfect time! Please let me know if you would like to secure a place for... your child. Danielle Calm Kids Counsellor #emotionalregulation #mindfulness #calmkids #bathurst #children #schoolholidays

04.01.2022 School holidays are approaching and it's the perfect opportunity for your child to learn some new skills to understand and manage their emotions, anxiety and stress. There are only 5 places per course available, so please contact me on 0475293027 or email [email protected] to secure a place. Danielle #mindfulness #children #emotions #anxiety #awareness #schoolholidayprogram #calmkids #bathurst #bathurstbusinesscentre

03.01.2022 I am often asked by parents how they can support their child’s emotional development at home. One of the best resources that I have found and always recommend is the Big Life Journal. There is a version for younger children and a version for teens. I have used these as a teacher with both younger children and tweens. It has been a very useful tool for me as a teacher, and also as a therapist, and I know for those who have been using it with their children at home, that it has been really helpful. I have no connection with the authors of this journal - it is simply something I recommend because I have used it and found it to be worthwhile. It would make a great Christmas present! #emotionalregulation #tools #journal #biglifejournal #bathurst #calmkids #christmaspresentideas

02.01.2022 Day 4 of the Calm Kids Mindfulness Course: today we focused on ways to develop a Growth Mindset. A very effective, but simple way to do this is to add the word YET to the end of a self-limiting sentence eg. Instead of saying ‘I can’t do this!’ - we can say ‘I can’t do this YET’. The addition of this one small word can have a huge impact on the way the brain processes our ability to accomplish something. Often we try to shield our children from experiencing some of the more n...egatively perceived feelings such as frustration or anger, however these feelings are quite normal and actually help us become more resilient and more effective problem-solvers. We all need to experience the full range of emotions and we need to learn effective and healthy ways to manage these feelings when they arrive. The children in the course today were set a variety of challenges so that they could ‘notice’ the feelings of frustration, annoyance and even mild anger when they arose. They were then encouraged to use their calming strategies to acknowledge the feeling and reconnect their upper and lower brains to be able to move through the feelings. The children were encouraged to show perseverance even when they found the challenge really difficult. All the challenges were solved in the end through teamwork and connection. I would like to acknowledge the efforts of the children as they noticed how much they learned, even during a short challenge, when they took a calming breath and kept going rather than giving up. #breathing #upperbrainlowerbrainconnection #growthmindset #perseverance #resilience #essentialskillsforlife #calmkids #bathurst #bathurstbusinesscentre