Actively Listening to your Child

Communicating with our children can be a difficult task at times.  We feel like they're not listening to us; they feel like we're not listening to them.  Good listening and communications skills are essential to successful parenting.  Your child's feelings, views and opinions have worth, and you should make sure you take the time to sit down and listen openly and discuss them honestly.
It seems to be a natural tendency to react rather than to respond.  We pass judgment based on our own feelings and experiences.  However, responding means being receptive to our child's feelings and emotions and allowing them to express themselves openly and honestly without fear of repercussion from us.  By reacting, we send our child the message that their feelings and opinions are invalid.  But by responding and asking questions

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Hospital Visits: 10 Tips for a Helpful Experience

Our daughter needed an unusual type of nerve surgery and only two surgeons in the US performed the operation. A local surgeon was going to do it but, after he broke his foot, referred our daughter to a surgeon in New Hampshire. The thought of surgery was scary and our daughter asked us to accompany her.

The count-down to surgery involved several steps. First, her medical records were sent to the New Hampshire surgeon. Next, our daughter met with the surgeon. Using an anatomical model, he explained the surgery in simple and concise words. Medical tests were the third step and our daughter had them the next day.

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