Peaceful Parents Program
Peaceful Parents is a Mindfulness and Positive Psychology program to support parents well being as well as learning strategies to support their children.
Learning is integrated into everyday lives and each week new strategies are taught and built on the previous week’s learning in a supportive group environment.
Parents discover strategies for themselves such as
Formal & Informal Mindfulness strategies
Slowing life down & being more in Flow
Enjoying parenting more & reducing stress
Resilience building exercises & strategies
Mindful parenting strategies
Self-Care & Wellbeing Boosters
Positive Psychology strategies to boost wellbeing
And to support their children by learning
Mindful listening & responding
Effective Coping Strategies
Managing children’s feelings & worries
Problem Solving strategies
Purpose of the Peaceful Parents program
The purpose of the Peaceful Parents program is to enhance parent wellbeing which in turn positively impacts on their children’s wellbeing. Not only is there growing evidence that reducing stress levels in parents naturally lessens the stress in the household for other family members, but it is also common sense. Professor Lea Waters from Melbourne University has found in her research that “Mindfulness in parenting significantly reduces children’s stress levels”. As Thich Nhat Han states "In a family, if there is one person who practices mindfulness, the entire family will become more mindful." In his many years of teaching mindfulness to families, he believes that mindfulness has a ripple effect in families.
Learning Philosophy
The Peaceful Parents workshop is a strength-based education course where parents learn through hands on practical activities, reflections, discussions and sharing. The parents are not passive learners and it is widely recognised that people learn best when they can relate any new concepts or strategies to their own lives. The program is based on the following learning philosophies:
Everyone in the group is a learner and we all learn from each other
Learning about ourselves is a lifelong journey – we have never ‘finished’ the learning about life or about ourselves
There is no expert in the group including the facilitator
Adults learn best when they can relate the learning to their personal lives
Changes occur in our lives when we have a chance to practice the skills rather than just ‘knowing’ about the skills
Having time to reflect, share and discuss ideas, opinions, connections, thoughts, feelings, and philosophies enables parents to integrate the learning fully
We can’t make anyone change their ideas, behaviours, opinions or philosophies – we can share new ideas, information and strategies and when people are ready they will change if they want to and if they see a need for it
The Power of a ‘Group’
The parents gain a range of benefits from participating in the Peaceful Parents program where parents meet in small groups. These benefits go way beyond just the content covered in the course, such as gaining stronger social supports and normalising the difficulties of parenting.
“Social support enhances health outcomes and reduces mortality by fulfilling basic social needs and enhancing social integration, mediating the effects of stress on health and protecting individuals from harmful influences of acute stressful events” (Quittner, Gleuckouf and Jackson 1990).
Through the small group experience parents can:
Share their joys, concerns, and learnings
Listen to each other’s experiences and therefore experience ‘normalising’ of the difficulties of parenting and our daily struggles
Share ideas and ask questions in a non-judgemental environment
Support others by knowing that they are not the only one who experiences difficulties such as feeling stressed or overwhelmed. Their experiences in life can become normalised.
Discover shared reciprocity
Gain courage to share and explore ideas safely
Know they are not alone in suffering
Increased knowledge of coping strategies through group sharing which leads to a greater sense of control
Develop a lasting support network in their community that is relevant and context specific
What the Peaceful Parents program isn’t
The Peaceful Parents is not:
A program to address behavioural management or behavioural problems in children
A program where they learn how to be a ‘better parent’
A counselling or therapy program for children or adults
A program to address individual issues with children or adults
A ‘seminar’ or ‘lecture’ where parents are not participants
Group therapy
Visit Website : peacefulkids.com.au/peaceful-parents