Parent coaching is an interactive process in which a guide offers support to facilitate positive changes in parenting practices and align your parenting with your family’s values. Coaching is action-oriented and focused on the present and future.

Parent consulting is a professional service in which someone with expertise in working with children and families provides advice and recommendations to work through parenting challenges.

Cultivation Parent Coaching & Consulting combines aspects of both approaches, balancing cultivating self-awareness with sharing concrete tools and information.

You may benefit from parent coaching and consulting if:

• You strive to have a more positive and connected relationship with your child

• You are motivated to shift parenting patterns and feel more confident in your parenting

• You feel “stuck” in your parenting or paralyzed by the many conflicting sources of parenting advice

• You are experiencing parenting challenges such as meltdowns, tantrums, power struggles, or sibling rivalry, or perhaps a life transition

• You like the idea of having accountable space and time dedicated to clarifying the life you want to create for your family, and considering possible strategies for moving forward toward your goals

Parent coaching is not the same as therapy from a licensed therapist or medical professional. Coaches do not make diagnoses, make medical recommendations, prescribe medications, or provide therapy. For this reason, parent coaching may not be a fit if:

• You or your child has experienced major trauma that has not been treated or integrated with the help of a licensed therapist or medical professional

• You or your child has an active addiction to technology, substances, etc.

• You or your child has a mental health condition that has not been treated by a licensed therapist or medical professional.

• Your child has moderate to severe autism spectrum disorder.

I am happy to provide referrals to care if any of these situations apply to you.

Consultations are a pressure-free opportunity for clients to get to know me, and ask any questions they may have about my experience or approach.

Initial sessions include an assessment of the current status of your parenting journey, including identifying strengths and challenges. We will collaboratively set goals and agree on a path forward for addressing the topics on your mind.

Typical sessions begin with a review of past discussions and action items. The client identifies the parenting topic being discussed, and I provide the structure and agenda. We will have a coaching conversation in which we use discussion and inquiry to explore the topic on your mind and gain greater personal clarity on your own perspective and ideas. I will spend some time sharing related tools and strategies for you to consider. At the end of the session, we will agree on an action plan that will help you move forward toward your goals.

Coaching is not covered by insurance; it is an out of pocket investment. If you or your child has an official medical diagnosis, such as ADHD, I encourage you to consult your FSA/HSA plan manager to explore whether using the FSA/HSA to pay for coaching may be possible. Some parents have had success with obtaining a letter of medical necessity from their pediatrician recommending parent coaching, and claiming the expense as “lesson” or “training” associated with having a child with a disability.

Certainly! Since families are living systems, I actually think it works best if all adults parenting the child participate. With that said, I completely welcome working with just one parent from a family; there is plenty of growth that can be made from one parent. We can discuss the possibility of your child joining coaching at times, depending on their age and other factors.