Positive Parenting Made Simple - Book Review

Positive Parenting Made Simple, by Raffael Lyon and S.K. Braga, is a parenting guide subtitled The Revolutionary Guide to Mindful Parenting that Nurtures Happiness, Success, and Stronger Bonds.

 Science-backed Steps to Raising Holistic Kids! The all-inclusive title seems to give away the context of this book but entices the reader to delve deeper into the content. Raffael Lyon, an award-winning author of parenting books, and his wife S.K. Braga, have three children and extensive parenting experience.  Their well-documented research led them to present a tried and true, science-backed parenting technique called Positive Parenting.

This approach interacts with the child and helps the child develop self-confidence, positive independence, problem-solving skills, and self-esteem.

 A short introduction compares currently recognized parenting styles, such as the authoritarian style, which is discipline-based. The authoritative style sets clear standards and strict rules to be followed, the permissive style is in which the parents are lenient and indulgent towards their kids, and the hands-off style is where the parents have little involvement in their children's lives.  

  The new approach enables parents to become more mindful of their child's development and how to react positively to childhood challenges.  

  A Mindfulness attitude is to be immersed in the moment with the child.  Parents actively participate with him in games and stories with full attention to what the child is experiencing.  Active listening enables the parent to decipher what the child is thinking and to reinforce positive concepts.  

  Parents can lead by example by reading aloud, participating in interactive games, and making believe. To be mindful of the child's developing emotions and deal with meltdowns and temper tantrums, parents try to calmly look at the situation from the child's point of view and encourage the child to express himself in words.

 Parents' self-awareness of their emotions, empathy, and stressors factor into helping the child with decision-making and problem-solving.  Parents often feel overwhelmed by work, household chores, and obligations, leaving them stressed and neglectful of their children's needs.  However, they should model positive behavior by managing emotions and reactions to create a bond with the child and a happier environment.

 Regardless of whether the reader identifies with the helicopter parent who is overly attentive and fearful of a child's problems and experiences and hovers overhead, or the Free-range parent whose child is self-directed, or somewhere in between, this book will enable parents to build a stronger bond with their child.