Family Workshops
From chaos to connection: Guiding your child through big feelings with confidence:
for parents of primary school children
Bespoke Centre, Zeals Garth, Hull, HU7 4WD
Places are limited to ensure that the environment is as safe and stress-free as possible.
All Workshops are inclusive, with neurodivergence at heart.
What are Family Workshops?
Family workshops provide a range of opportunities for you to connect with your children, and to develop knowledge and awareness about your children’s needs. They cover:
Emotional Awareness - using play, mindfulness and visualisations, for example, we will create opportunities to explore ways to connect and listen in, to listen to your bodies and hear the stories your minds create. Developing language, connection with self and each-other, all whilst developing the neural/brain networks for emotion, expression and self-awareness. It’s all powerful stuff.
Regulation - learn new ways to understand your children’s emotions and how they influence their needs when it comes to regulating big feelings. In order to do this, we look at neurobiology (the relationship between the brain and nervous system), we look at energy states e.g. do they need more or less energy and their sensory needs e.g. explore how particular senses feel to your children and whether they feel up or down (energy-wise) regulated by them.
Connection - as a mother of two, I experience the challenge of spending time with my children with the million and one things that I need to do. As a psychotherapist, I often hear how people aren’t able to connect with their loved ones, how they want to. I combine both of these observations and therefore all the workshops for parents and their kids have an emphasis on connection.
Behaviour - behaviour is a form of communication, so it’s important that we take space to be curious about our children’s behaviours, to improve how we meet their needs and reduce the stress between us, This is not behaviour management, instead, it gives YOU the tools to manage your own responses to your child’s challenging behavioural communication.
Join me for a Zoom where I’ll talk you through what to expect and what you will gain.
April 1st, 12:30
This April - Two Family Workshops to Choose From
Parent £15, Child £5
(Save 10% when booking both together.)
Frequently Asked Questions:
What is Emotional Awareness?
Emotional awareness is about knowing, understanding and sensing that feelings are there in themselves, and in others. It’s slightly different to emotional literacy which is about being able to articulate the feelings, but they are also closely related/similar and they are both extremely valuable in our social connections and our ability to meet our own needs.
There are a number of reasons that adults and kids may struggle with emotional awareness - here are a few examples:
Alexithymia - some people, often but not always, neurodivergent folks, struggle to sense and name their feelings. This isn’t a deficit, it is linked to their neurobiology, part of our neurodivergence as a whole. Put another way, it’s a difference among us.
Trauma - sometimes, hard times can leave the person disconnecting from their feelings and perhaps even feeling numb. This isn’t done consciously, but as a means of getting through the hard time/s
Cultural differences - some cultures (including family cultures) encourage emotion and some may consider it a weakness
Gender - stereotypically, girls are given more permission to feel and are encouraged to be aware of the feelings of others, whereas boys are discouraged to express some feelings and encouraged/permitted to feel a small range of feelings, such as anger
And it can be as simple as genetics - the way in which our genes are expressed is influenced by a wide range of factors.
Are the Family Workshops just for parents of neuro-divergent kids?
No, they’re inclusive. This means that the activities will be presented in ways that will take things like demand avoidance, rejection sensitivity and sensory needs into consideration. Parents and carers will complete an intake form and have the opportunity to let me know of any accessibility needs, including safe foods, so all kids can take advantage of the snacks and drinks. The learning opportunities are useful and beneficial for everyone!
How much are the workshops?
The workshops are primarily for parents and carers, your children get to come along for the fun and they also hold some of the answers we’ll be looking for. Therefore, the main tickets is for the adults, at £15 per person and each child is an additional £5.
There is a 10% discount when both workshops are booked i.e. a family of 4 would be £50 per workshop or £90 for both.
Don’t things like Emotional Awareness and Regulation develop naturally?
Yes, often they can and do. Attending the family workshops isn’t only a good idea if there’s a problem, it’s just a good idea. I won’t launch into a political rant here, but I need to be a little political to explain.
Our culture here in the UK, is fast paced and gives positive validation to those who work harder and faster. Social media and the internet gives instant gratification and all of this leaves us looking and relating to the things outside of our own bodies. It doesn’t leave us bored (providing opportunity for creativity), feeling the impact of sadness or loneliness and it means we don’t really get to see and feel how people really are.
Taking the time to play, to practice mindfulness and slow down helps balance the impact that life can have on us. They provide dopamine, serotonin and oxytocin - the neurotransmitters responsible for motivation, emotion and affection and connection.
What’s the set-up/what can we expect?
First and foremost you will have fun with your loved ones. You’ll have fun and you will feel a deeper connection with them too. In the two hours you’re with us, you have nowhere else to be, nothing else to do - but to show up and receive.
You'll get fed! There will be snacks and drinks available, and you will complete an accessibility form before attending, so if you or your little ones have safe foods or dietary needs - I will do my best to make sure you are catered for.
You will have a safe space to be together. The space will be inclusive, created for those with sensory needs and led by ‘what feels nice and right’. Activities will always be optional, sometimes our kids use all their energy by just being there. Big feelings and big expression is also welcome.
You will get to explore each other - what do you like and what don’t you like? This could be music, movement, food, smells, pressure on your body - who knows what will come up, but you will have fun exploring each other, and yourselves!
You will see yourself in others and you will also hold the mirror up for others attending - groups have a powerful impact on our physiology, think stress - group connection that is safe and led by you, reduces the impact and symptoms of stress, and that’s just one offering!
You’ll receive the learning points via PDF before the workshop. This is so you can familiarise yourself with the content, this minimises uncertainty for you and you may also want to use it to explain to your children what they can expect too.
You will have the opportunity to meet in a Zoom call, with other workshop members, to go deeper into the learning content and apply it to your own family and circumstance.
These are a few of the things I anticipate you receiving, but my experience of facilitating groups tells me I can never encapsulate all that is available for you to receive - it unfolds naturally - I’m not in control of that bit; I follow it.
Click the image to download the png. file.
Join me for a Zoom where I’ll talk you through what to expect and what you will gain.
April 1st, 12:30
This April - Two Family Workshops to Choose From
Parent £15, Child £5
(Save 10% when booking both together.)
Facilitated by Alex Carling
(She/Her)
Psychotherapist
Clinical Supervisor
Neuro-Affirming
Trauma Informed
Adoption Certified
Mum of two
