Good Inside: A Guide to Becoming the Parent You Want to Be
Appropriate Age Range:
Adults and caregivers.
What this book is all about:
Dr. Becky is the biggest cheerleader for you as a parent! She believes you are good inside, even when you make mistakes, and that your kids are good inside, even when they make mistakes. She shares her belief that two things can be true to help with boundaries (screen time can be over today and my child can feel upset about that) and parenting self esteem (I can feel overwhelmed which came out as yelling at my kid and still be trying my best and be good inside). After laying out her attachment based parenting philosophy, she breaks down various issues by chapters with issues ranging from separation anxiety, sibling rivalry, explosive behaviors, and more.
Why you might want to read it:
To validate your good-inside-ness and to give you ideas to connect with your kiddo around specific issues. Dr. Becky is known for honoring the parent-child relationship first and foremost, and then secondarily, providing parents scripts to help them navigate hard situations.
3 questions for you to ask yourself after reading it:
When my child has their difficult behavior (meltdowns, emotional shut downs, bickering with sibling, etc) what is the most generous interpretation of this behavior?
What is a boundary that needs to be established in my relationship with my child and what do I need to do (not my child) to carry out that boundary?
What are three ways my child is good inside?