OUR FIRST PRIORITY

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        Reflections on Parenting    

         Glory Fox Dierker, Ph.D.    

   There are many books in the popular press that offer parenting advice. The soundest are those based on research and written by informed individuals who do not have a religious or political agenda. When you hear parenting advice from any source (i.e., books, TV, parents, friends, random strangers) it is vital that you ask yourself, “What is the source of their expertise?". Too often those offering advice have no objective knowledge and have either not raised children of their own, or have done a pretty bad job of it. In parenting, the proof is in the pudding. Generally, troubled children come from homes in which there is poor to abusive parenting. Children are the mirrors of their families. This sounds harsh, but it is not hopeless. As long as there is life, parents and children have opportunities to strengthen their relationships and grow healthier.

   Briefly my credentials include: being the mother of three kind adult children who are emotionally, intellectually, and socially successful; I have a Ph.D. in clinical psychology with a specialty in child development; I served for eight years as the director of The Center for Women and Families, a parent education institute in Alexandria, VA; and for the past twenty years, I have been the director and a psychotherapist at The Family Center, a large private psychotherapy practice in Falls Church, VA.

  It is important to share a common language when talking about families and children. There are three books that I recommend. The first is readily available. The second two are more difficult to find, but well worth a search.

  Raising an Emotionally Intelligent Child: The Heart of Parenting

        John Gottman

  Children the Challenge

        Rudolf Dreikurs

  Your Child’s Self Esteem

        Dorothy Briggs

  Please read one or all of these books before we begin our journey into understanding ourselves, our children, and our mutual relationships.

More later,

Glory