Life Education

Raising a child can bring joy, love and deep fulfillment. But modern-day parenting takes place against a backdrop of many life pressures – demanding jobs, financial stressors, grief, separation, and sometimes a lack of extended family support. Parent burnout is a common phenomenon, with 60% of parents in a recent study saying they never find time to relax and recharge and nearly half feeling they do not have enough time to get everything done. Self-care might seem like a luxury, especially during a cost-of-living crisis, but evidence shows parent self-care is crucial to the wellbeing of children and vital for parents’ physical and emotional health. In this episode of the Life Ed Podcast, child and adolescent psychiatrist Dr Kaylene Henderson, a busy mum of three, shares her down-to-earth tips for combating parent burnout. Perfectionism and trying to do it all are a recipe for burnout. Instead, we should focus more on lowering the bar and delighting in our children and the quality of our relationships with them says Dr Henderson. Set your own priorities, avoid comparison, and put yourself at the top of the 'to-do' list. And if your sink is sometimes overflowing with dishes, that’s okay too.

Getting kids off gaming devices can be a huge stress for many parents, but where do you turn when your child’s gaming hobby becomes a worrying addiction? In some cases, gaming is taking over all aspects of life - family, relationships, school and work. Excessive gaming can even affect cognitive function, leading to addiction, depression and aggression. Dr Kim Le is a psychiatrist and internet gaming disorder specialist and host of the SBS documentary - Are you addicted to technology? A former gaming addict himself, he knows all too well the hold that video games can have on young people. Dr Le is now on a mission to help young people and their families manage gaming disorder to curb the detrimental physical and mental impacts. Even mild gaming addiction is the cause of conflict in many homes across Australia. Find out what you can do as a parent to prevent gaming becoming a problem and how to address the issue with your child or teen if gaming addiction has taken hold.

Does it sometimes feel like technology is the bane of your parenting existence? Wasn’t life simpler when kids just played sport, climbed trees and created their own make-believe games? Probably, yes, but like it or not, today’s kids are living in a digital world, and somehow, we need to blend the best of days gone by with 21st technology. Digital wellbeing and productivity expert Dr Kristy Goodwin says parents can achieve more digital balance if they learn to be the pilot of the digital plane (not the passenger). She shares the latest neuroscience analysing screen time’s impact on young brains and explains how to achieve a more holistic balance without total bans and techno tantrums. If you could use some handy parental tools to navigate our always-on digital culture, this podcast has the answers.

Let’s talk about consent Consent is an important concept for everyone to understand. It applies to situations that occur every day, to everyone. Consent education is now mandatory in Australian schools, but consent is not just about sex. It’s an agreement regarding your rights or your body. In this podcast, host Tracey Challenor speaks to expert educators and a parent for advice on how to approach the consent conversation with younger children. Co-author of Welcome to Consent, academic and practising physician Dr Melissa Kang says it begins with helping children to understand private and personal space as well as teaching kids to identify the boundaries of others. Respectful relationships are part of the conversation. Life Ed Puberty and relationships educator Lane Norman also shares how she navigates what can be a tricky conversation: “I say to children, it’s your body. No one gets to tell you what to do with it, so listen to your body, listen to your gut response, and keep yourself safe.”

Anxiety is a mental health condition, meaning it can affect the way you think, feel and behave. Surveys suggest that anxiety may be on the rise. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, around one in eight Australians (13.1%) had an anxiety related condition in 2017-18, an increase from 11.2% in 2014-15. Mental health services report this number has risen further since COVID. 

Respected author and parenting expert Michael Grose knows firsthand how debilitating anxiety can be. Using his own experience and latest research from around the world, he co-wrote Anxious Kids with Dr Jodi Richardson. In this podcast he explains the simple things parents can do to help children move from excessive worry to a place of calm. From replacing screen time with more green time, to helping kids find fun and flow in mindful immersive activities, and improving diet, Michael reveals how little steps can establish lifelong habits that help move anxiety from centre stage to background noise.  

For many parents and their children, the school journey is a long and winding road.  Along with the good times, there are also challenges – the daily demands of the school routine; separation anxiety; homework headaches; motivation issues and even bullying.  

Popular clinical psychologist Dr Judith Locke - the author of The Bonsai Student - chats with journalist Tracey Challenor about the simple ways to help your child succeed in today’s school environment. She says the school report card is not the only measure of success: helping kids become responsible, resilient and ready for the years that follow school, is just as important. Using humour and practical strategies that have helped thousands of families, Dr Locke’s advice is the helpful ‘handbook to parenting’ you always wanted. 

Despite Australia having some of the freshest and healthiest food on Earth, Aussie kids and adults are falling well short when it comes to eating enough greens. Journalist Tracey Challenor chats with leading dietitian Kate Di Prima, author of More Peas Please: Solutions for Feeding Fussy Eaters, about how we can reverse the trend - which has huge potential health impacts - and also how to manage fussy eaters and food allergies. After COVID and Christmas, this is the perfect podcast to help you reset the family diet for 2021.

Professor Bartlett cites a recent study showing more than three quarters of Australian adults (or a little over 55%) reported their mental health had worsened since the COVID-19 outbreak. 

Newby, JM: O'Moore, K Tang, S: Christensen, H: Faasse K, 'Acute mental health responses during the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia'. Plos One, Published: July 28, 2020 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0236562

This disclaimer informs listeners and readers that the views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in this podcast belong solely to the interviewee, and not necessarily to Life Education. 

Growing up today is a lot different to what it used to be. Although we all want to raise happy kids, there are added pressures like social media, too much screen time, cyber threats and 21st century challenges beyond our control. Hugh van Cuylenburg, founder of The Resilience Project, says we can’t control the future and we can’t change the past, but we can improve our everyday outlook by practising the GEM principles – gratitude, empathy (or compassion), and mindfulness. In part two of his chat for Life Education, Hugh talks about what drives his work, how to stop technology from making us less present, and the one simple activity that boosts happiness. In a year of upheaval, Hugh’s relatable advice and humour is a welcome tonic for mental wellbeing.