The best gift we can give to our kids is to be present in their lives. The responsibility of being a parent can be daunting, but being there for our children is essential to their development and happiness. Learn what you can do to become a more conscious parent with advice from our experts at Kids in the House.

Author and psychologist Shefali Tsabary, PhD shares that becoming a conscious parent is a matter of continual progression throughout your life. “Consciousness is the ability to become more aware of when we have fallen off track… and when we are responding to our own unmet needs rather than responding to a child’s needs in the moment,” she says. We need to escape the idle distractions in life that keep us from fully being there for our children.  When we can accomplish this, we are better able to “understand who our child is in the present moment and listen to them with different ears, a different understanding, and a different insight,” Tsabary explains.

Unconscious parenting is often a result of being unaware of the emotional baggage you are carrying as a parent. Tsabary explains, “To enter a conscious state of parenting and of awareness means to understand that the emotional imprints that we inherited from our parents is going to directly impact and bear upon the parental relationship that we have with our child.” Parents need to gain a better perspective of their emotional baggage and how it is affecting their children on a daily basis.

Being mindful of your children requires patience and focus. “The first step is to connect to our children and all of their feelings,” says psychotherapist Julie Wright, MFT. “We need to take time to really see them and hear them, and feel their feelings and let them know that we understand them.” Wright encourages parents to show greater empathy for their children and focus on what will help their child in that moment. Oftentimes, all your children need is for you to listen to them.

Psychotherapist Tina Bryson, PhD explains how conscious parents are the “architects” of their children’s brains. “When parents provide nurturing experiences over and over and they meet their children’s needs, not perfectly but consistently and repeatedly, then children’s brains get wired to expect that that’s how relationships work,” says Bryson. Parents don’t need to be perfect, but they need to be consistent. Repeatedly being there for your children will help them develop that same trait within themselves.

Do you still need advice on becoming a more conscious parent? Join us for our Google Hangout, “The Gift of Presence: How to Become A More Conscious Parent,” tomorrow, September 23rd, at 1:30PM PST. We will be answering your questions live! Click here to RSVP for the Hangout!