What if the hardest parts of your parenting journey are actually pointing you toward your greatest growth?

In this deeply honest and powerful conversation, I sit down with psychologist and parenting educator Anna Seewald, host of the Authentic Parenting Podcast, to explore how trauma, loss, and early life experiences shape the way we show up as parents.

Anna shares her personal story of losing her mother at a young age and how that profound loss resurfaced when she became a parent herself, bringing unexpected grief, loneliness, and emotional challenges. Together, we unpack the reality of early parenthood: the isolation, the overwhelm, and the way parenting can activate “silent volcanoes” of past trauma.

You’ll walk away with a powerful reframe: parenting isn’t just raising a child, it’s a transformative process that reveals both your deepest wounds and your greatest capacity for healing.

Topics covered in this episode:

• The hidden loneliness and isolation of early motherhood
• How parenting acts as a stress test for unresolved trauma
• The impact of early parental loss on identity and parenting
• “Trauma superpowers” and the concept of post-traumatic growth
• The fine line between growth and toxic positivity
• Hypervigilance vs. presence: two sides of trauma awareness
• How gratitude and perspective can emerge from hardship
• The importance of creating the support you didn’t receive

About the Guest:

Anna Seewald is an internationally recognized psychologist, parenting educator, keynote speaker, and host of the Authentic Parenting Podcast. With over 25 years of experience, she is passionate about helping parents heal their own trauma so they can raise emotionally healthy children. Her mission is to end violence against children by transforming the way we approach parenting. To learn more, visit authenticparenting.com

Connect with me on Instagram @dr.koslowitzpsychology and check out my new book Post-Traumatic Parenting: Break the Cycle and Become the Parent You Always Wanted to Be

What happens when food, feeding, and our kids’ bodies trauma shows up in ways we don’t always expect?

In this deeply honest and compassionate conversation, I speak with eating disorder specialist Ali Spotts-De Lazzer to unpack what’s really going on beneath eating struggles for both kids and parents.

Together, we explore why feeding your child can feel so overwhelming, how fear and control get tangled up in “healthy” choices, and why even the most well-intentioned parenting strategies can sometimes backfire.

Ali brings both her clinical expertise and lived experience to this conversation, offering a grounded, non-shaming perspective that every parent needs to hear.

Topics covered in this episode:

• The connection between safety, control, and eating disorders
• How “healthy eating” can quietly turn into rigidity and fear
• What orthorexia is and why it’s so hard to spot
• The difference between ARFID, anxiety, and eating disorders
• Why some kids are more vulnerable and why it’s not your fault
• How diet culture and weight bias impact parenting decisions
• The biological reality of restriction and binge cycles
• Why parents often blame themselves and what’s actually happening instead
• How self-acceptance (not perfection) is the key to change

About the Guest:

Ali Spotts-De Lazzer is a licensed therapist, eating disorder specialist, and passionate advocate for helping families navigate the complex world of food, body image, and healing. With nearly 20 years of experience, she brings both deep clinical knowledge and lived understanding to her work with individuals and caregivers. Ali leads parent support groups and is the author of MeaningFULL, with a new book on supporting families through eating disorders coming soon. Her work centers on compassion, self-acceptance, and helping people truly live their full story. To learn more visit liveyourfullstory.com.

Connect with me on Instagram @dr.koslowitzpsychology and check out my new book Post-Traumatic Parenting: Break the Cycle and Become the Parent You Always Wanted to Be

What if your child’s “behavior problem” isn’t a behavior problem at all?

In this deeply practical and paradigm-shifting conversation, I sit down with clinical psychologist Dr. Ross Greene, originator of the Collaborative and Proactive Solutions (CPS) approach, to rethink everything we’ve been taught about parenting, discipline, and so-called “challenging behavior.”

Dr. Greene, author of The Explosive Child and Lost at School, shares how years of working with children and families led him to one central realization: kids don’t fail to meet expectations because they “won’t," they struggle because they “can’t yet.”

Together, we explore why traditional tools like sticker charts, timeouts, punishments, and “tough love” often miss the real issue entirely; and how they can damage trust and connection in the process.

Instead, Dr. Greene offers a radically different approach: one that prioritizes collaboration, curiosity, and solving the real problems behind behavior rather than reacting to the behavior itself.

Topics covered in this episode:

• The hidden flaw in behavior-based discipline systems (timeouts, sticker charts, rewards)
• Why behavior is often a signal, not the problem itself
• How trauma shapes both kids’ behavior and parents’ reactions
• Why “proactive” problem solving reduces conflict and overwhelm
• What to do when kids shut down, escalate, or refuse to talk

About the Guest:

Dr. Ross Greene is a clinical psychologist and the originator of Collaborative and Proactive Solutions (CPS), an evidence-based approach to understanding and supporting children with behavioral challenges. He is the author of several influential books, including The Explosive Child, Lost at School, and Lost and Found, as well as his recently published book The Kids Who Aren’t Okay: The Urgent Case for Re-Imagining Support, Belonging, and Hope in Schools. To learn more about Dr. Ross Greene, and to buy copies of his books, you can visit his website here.

Connect with me on Instagram @dr.koslowitzpsychology and check out my new book Post-Traumatic Parenting: Break the Cycle and Become the Parent You Always Wanted to Be