TELL ME IT WILL BE OK

How to Move on After a Mama Meltdown: Guest Podcast with Pam Howard

Dawn Friedman introduces the final May Mental Health Awareness Month guest episode of Tell Me It Will Be OK, featuring Pam Howard of Less Drama More Mama, a licensed clinical social worker, master certified life coach, author, and mom of two. Pam shares two “mama meltdown” stories—one in 2009 with a 3-year-old and newborn when she yelled, threatened consequences, and spanked in rage, and another 13 years later when she yelled at her teen for not getting up for school and threatened a truancy officer. She explains how, instead of spiraling into shame, she practiced self-compassion, sought support, and used the experience as growth, drawing on The Gap and the Gain to focus on progress. Pam describes repairing with her daughters through apology, conversation, and a “family reset,” and invites listeners to forgive themselves and reframe imperfect parenting as an opportunity for change. 00:00 Finale Guest Intro 02:20 What Is a Mama Meltdown 02:51 2009 Breaking Point 04:55 Shame and Wake Up Call 06:17 Meltdown Returns Years Later 07:02 Saboteurs Take Over 08:57 Choosing Self Compassion 10:24 Gap Versus Gain Mindset 11:11 Repairing After the Blowup 13:24 Forgiveness and Growth 15:16 Wrap Up and Coaching Invite Get more of Pam at the following links: Website: Less Drama More Mama [https://lessdramamoremama.com] Instagram: Less Drama More Mama [https://instagram.com/lessdramamama] Facebook: Less Drama More Mama [https://facebook.com/lessdramamoremama] Mentioned in this episode: Tell Me It Will Be OK: The Practice 🌟 READY TO FIND YOUR ROOM TO BREATHE? Tell Me It Will Be OK: The Practice is a weekly, 30-minute audio-guided journaling sanctuary designed to help you connect with your own inner wisdom, calm, and connection.ry a free 30-minute sample session today and lock in your spot on our priority waitlist for the July 8th launch. Get your free sample session at OpenBookParenting.com!

Parenting Older Kids Without Overfunctioning: Guest Podcast with Leah Davidson

In this Mental Health Awareness Month crossover, the Tell Me It Will Be Okay podcast features Leah Davidson [https://leahdavidsonlifecoaching.com/nsr-roadmap/]—speech language pathologist, nervous system resilience coach, host of Building Resilience [https://www.youtube.com/@leahdavidsonlifecoaching], and founder of Resilient Brilliance—sharing an episode on “Parenting Older Kids Without Overfunctioning.” Leah explains that as kids become teens and young adults, parents’ roles shift from constant doing to observing, which can bring grief, relief, confusion, and longing. She argues older kids don’t “borrow” a parent’s regulation the same way; they react to it, so parental urgency, advice, and fixing can feel like pressure or control and create distance. Leah emphasizes regulating yourself to respond rather than reflexively react, set clear boundaries without escalation, and create space that communicates respect and trust. She offers practical cues like pausing, using non-withdrawn silence, and reflecting on effort versus connection. 00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro 01:58 Why Older Kids Hit Hard 03:28 Midlife Focus and Community 05:40 From Borrowing to Reacting 07:36 Regulate Yourself and Set Boundaries 10:00 Space Builds Connection 12:31 The Real Work Is You 14:05 Practical Regulation Tools 15:31 Stop Overfunctioning for Closeness 17:34 Reflection Questions and Wrap Up 19:13 Community Invite and Outro Mentioned in this episode: Tell Me It Will Be OK: The Practice 🌟 READY TO FIND YOUR ROOM TO BREATHE? Tell Me It Will Be OK: The Practice is a weekly, 30-minute audio-guided journaling sanctuary designed to help you connect with your own inner wisdom, calm, and connection.ry a free 30-minute sample session today and lock in your spot on our priority waitlist for the July 8th launch. Get your free sample session at OpenBookParenting.com!

Overcoming Avoidance: Choose Your Path to Success: Guest Podcast with Cynthia Coufal

In recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, the Tell Me It Will Be Okay Podcast shares its platform with Cynthia Coffel’s Teen Anxiety Maze for an episode titled “Overcoming Avoidance: Choose Your Path to Success,” inspired by Lynn Lyons’ book Anxious Kids, Anxious Parents. Cynthia explains how avoidance temporarily relieves discomfort but reinforces anxiety over time, showing up in everyday procrastination and in teens avoiding school, friends, parties, driving, or homework. She encourages parents and teens to identify meaningful goals, reframe “I have to” into “I choose to,” and use mindset shifts to make difficult tasks more tolerable. Cynthia emphasizes supporting kids through manageable discomfort (not panic), role modeling persistence, and preparing teens for adulthood by practicing doing hard things, and invites listeners to work with her through coaching and an “anxiety audit” call. 00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro 01:26 Meet Teen Anxiety Maze 02:03 Book Series and Coaching Offer 04:27 Why We Avoid Tasks 08:00 Avoidance in Anxious Kids 10:13 Find Goals and Motivation 14:55 School Refusal Mindset Shift 17:33 Choose Versus Have To 20:40 Parenting for Discomfort Skills 26:51 Goal Formula and Role Modeling 29:59 Wrap Up and How to Connect You can learn more about connect with Cynthia by heading to her website, BetterRegulateThanNever.com [https://www.betterregulatethannever.com] and by following her on instagram @cynthiacoufalcoaching [https://www.instagram.com/cynthiacoufalcoaching] Mentioned in this episode: Tell Me It Will Be OK: The Practice 🌟 READY TO FIND YOUR ROOM TO BREATHE? Tell Me It Will Be OK: The Practice is a weekly, 30-minute audio-guided journaling sanctuary designed to help you connect with your own inner wisdom, calm, and connection.ry a free 30-minute sample session today and lock in your spot on our priority waitlist for the July 8th launch. Get your free sample session at OpenBookParenting.com!

How to Find a Therapist for Your Anxious Child (and Why It’s So Hard)

Dawn Friedman introduces the Tell Me It Will Be Okay podcast and, for Mental Health Awareness Month and Child Mental Health Awareness Week (beginning May 3), announces that each Friday in May will feature another parenting-focused podcast’s favorite episode. She then explains why finding therapy for kids and teens is difficult, including provider shortages and insurance complications, and shares why she doesn’t take insurance: extensive paperwork, payment and coverage errors, limits on session length, insurer control over notes, and insurers dictating care. She discusses sliding scale realities, concerns about large venture-funded services and clinician turnover, and why a therapist doesn’t need to be a parent but should have child experience, consultation support, and training in child anxiety (including awareness of SPACE and parent involvement). She recommends ways to find referrals, highlights diagnosis/treatment plan considerations, and explains custody-related legal limits and why child therapists can’t weigh in on custody. 00:00 Podcast Welcome and May Series 00:56 Why Finding a Therapist Is Hard 01:15 Private Practice Background 02:09 Why Therapists Skip Insurance 06:35 Sliding Scale and Low Cost Options 07:54 Concerns About Big Therapy Platforms 09:56 Should Your Therapist Be a Parent 11:50 Kid Experience and Supervision Matters 16:02 Child Anxiety Training and Parent Role 17:51 School Based Therapy and Diagnoses 19:21 Treatment Plans and Long Term Fit 22:29 How to Find and Vet Therapists 27:21 Rapport and Why Child Therapy Is Tough 29:03 Custody Battles and Legal Limits 32:17 SPACE Directory and Wrap Up You can find a SPACE trained provider by going here: https://www.spacetreatment.net [https://www.spacetreatment.net] Mentioned in this episode: Tell Me It Will Be OK: The Practice 🌟 READY TO FIND YOUR ROOM TO BREATHE? Tell Me It Will Be OK: The Practice is a weekly, 30-minute audio-guided journaling sanctuary designed to help you connect with your own inner wisdom, calm, and connection.ry a free 30-minute sample session today and lock in your spot on our priority waitlist for the July 8th launch. Get your free sample session at OpenBookParenting.com!

Growing as Parents with Dr. Michael Schwartzman

The episode of the Tell Me It Will Be Okay podcast features an interview with New York–licensed psychologist and psychoanalyst Dr. Michael Schwartzman about his book The Anxious Parent: Freeing Yourself from the Stresses and Fears of Parenting and how parents can separate their own anxiety from their child’s needs through reflection and child-development awareness. Schwartzman discusses how modern parenting includes more unknowns, why consistency matters more than occasional “perfect” responses, and how children learn through experience, including useful failure, risk-taking, and independence. He shares personal stories of his own anxious parenting and explains how parents can avoid over-identifying with their child while still providing empathy and guidance. We discuss how “the problem is the point,” encouraging experimentation, tolerating discomfort, and authoring one’s own parenting based on values rather than quick-fix advice. You can connect with Dr. Schwartzman and learn more about his books at his website, MichaelSchwartzmanPhD.com [https://michaelschwartzmanphd.com]. He also mentions two books in his podcast. They are: * The Blessing of a Skinned Knee: Raising Self-Reliant Children [https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-blessing-of-a-skinned-knee-raising-self-reliant-children-wendy-mogel-ph-d/77120ba4349d3442?ean=9781416593065&next=t] by Wendy Mogul PhD * The Ordinary is Extraordinary: How Children Under Three Learn [https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-ordinary-is-extraordinary-how-children-under-three-learn-amy-laura-dombro/a4d1eb0fedd62abe?ean=9781504036269&next=t] by Amy Laura Dobro and Leah Wallach 00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro 02:34 How Parenting Changed 06:00 Separating Parent vs Child Anxiety 07:40 Social Media Parenting Fixes 10:55 Consistency Over Perfection 12:50 Developmental Expectations 16:09 Shaping Child and World 17:59 Anxious Parent Origin Story 21:36 Time Travel and Triggers 27:03 Letting Kids Own Their Lives 28:35 Raising Kids to Leave 32:16 Learning Through Adjustment 33:29 Letting Kids Struggle 35:19 Confidence Through Parenting 37:38 Working With Resistance 40:16 Benign Versus Harmful Neglect 43:05 Try It Your Way 43:52 Parenting Resources 46:39 School Psychologist Role 48:15 Becoming A Parent 52:56 Parenting Is Messy 55:06 Problem Is The Point 58:15 Author Your Parenting 01:01:03 Learning Is The Point 01:03:15 Final Takeaways Mentioned in this episode: Tell Me It Will Be OK: The Practice 🌟 READY TO FIND YOUR ROOM TO BREATHE? Tell Me It Will Be OK: The Practice is a weekly, 30-minute audio-guided journaling sanctuary designed to help you connect with your own inner wisdom, calm, and connection.ry a free 30-minute sample session today and lock in your spot on our priority waitlist for the July 8th launch. Get your free sample session at OpenBookParenting.com!