The Stress Nanny with Lindsay Miller

What if a few quiet moments each day could help your child bounce back faster, sleep more easily, and feel steadier in their own skin? In this episode we share a few ways that gratitude can flip the nervous system from fight-or-flight into rest-and-digest. Drawing from research at UCLA, USC, and studies by Robert Emmons and Michael McCullough, we connect the dots between gratitude, emotional regulation, resilience, and long-term he...

What happens when a former speech therapist realizes the “perfect plan” for parenting doesn’t exist—and chooses presence over pressure? We sit down with Carrie Lingenfelter to explore how mindful attention, compassionate language, and simple spiritual practices can transform family life, especially for highly sensitive and neurodiverse kids.

Carrie shares her journey from evidence-first frameworks to heart-led parenting th...

The glow of “perfect together” can hide a much harsher truth. We sit down with narcissism specialist Dr. Anthony Mazzella to unpack how the illusion of blissful union forms, why ordinary differences feel like threats, and what actually changes when you stop outsourcing your worth. From a psychodynamic perspective, we trace the arc from early unmet needs to adult relationships that demand constant validation, then explore the real c...

One tall flower in a crowded field changes everything. Dr. Douglas Garland joins us to unpack Tall Poppy Syndrome—the ancient metaphor with very modern consequences—and gives parents a working language for envy, jealousy, pride, and the status games kids navigate every day. We dig into how cultures reward sameness or celebrate standouts, why the U.S. produces both more tall poppies and people who cut them down, and how social media...

Holiday seasons are loud, bright, sweet, and often overwhelming—and that’s exactly why they’re perfect for teaching kids (and ourselves) how to be present. We explore a simple presence practice that uses the five senses to bring a busy mind back to now, turning chaotic moments into chances for calm, clarity, and connection. From Halloween costumes and crinkly candy wrappers to warm pie dough and the glow of neighborhood lights, we ...

Ever wish your teen would text more than “k,” while your paragraphs go unread? We dive into a simple framework that makes family communication clearer and calmer: six modes—sending, talking, meaning-making, tacit knowing, signaling, and advocacy—and how to switch between them without adding more stress. Our guest, Craig Mattson, professor of communication and author of Digital Overwhelm, brings research from modern workplaces into ...

Homework shouldn’t feel like a bear attack, yet for many ADHD families, everyday tasks trigger fight, flight, or freeze. We invited ADHD coach and mindfulness facilitator Corie Wightlin to help us turn those explosive moments into opportunities for calm, connection, and growth. Corie blends neuroscience, executive function know-how, and lived experience to show how a simple “pause” can redirect the entire evening—and how a practica...

What if the fastest way to move forward isn’t a grand reinvention, but one small promise kept today? That’s the heartbeat of this conversation with possibility coach and author Victoria Rader, PhD—a practical, grace-filled path from survival to significance that starts with a better question and a tiny step.

We start with Victoria’s unlikely origin story: a joyful family trip that quietly became debt, a Google search for f...

Ever found yourself staring at the ceiling, mind racing, unable to drift off to sleep? You're not alone. This episode was born from a conversation with one of my middle school clients who shared she'd been using regular podcast episodes to help calm her mind on sleepless nights. Together, we realized what she truly needed was a dedicated guided relaxation - and that's exactly what this special episode delivers. Thank...

Ever watched your child navigate a challenging moment with unexpected grace? In this illuminating conversation with Giselle Shardlow, founder of Kids Yoga Stories, we explore how ancient yoga wisdom offers modern solutions for our children's most pressing challenges.

Giselle's journey weaves together threads of yoga practice from her childhood in rural Canada to her work as an international school teacher. What b...

Have you ever considered that your body's pain might actually be stress looking for a way out? That the mysterious aches, tension, and discomfort could be your body's increasingly desperate attempt to communicate something important?

Naturopath and reflexologist Njideka Olatunde transforms our understanding of the pain-stress connection with revolutionary simplicity: "You cannot have pain without stress, and...

Ever wondered why stress seems hardwired into our daily experience? Stanford professor and pediatric intensive care physician Dr. Greg Hammer returns to The Stress Nanny podcast to unpack this question and share his revolutionary GAIN method for stress reduction.

Dr. Hammer explains that our brains evolved with a negativity bias that once served our ancestors well but now interferes with our happiness. This tendency to rem...

Ever wonder why you keep finding yourself in the same toxic relationships despite your best efforts to choose better partners or friends? The answer might surprise you.

Revolutionary recovery expert TJ Woodward joins Lindsay Miller to reveal why addressing toxic relationships requires an inside-out approach rather than simply removing "toxic people" from your life. With profound compassion and clarity, TJ explain...

We're often told to prioritize self-care, but what if simply meeting basic needs isn't enough? What if we deserve not just sustainability, but actual joy and pleasure in our daily lives? In this soul-nourishing conversation, intuitive guide Julie Hilson shares wisdom from her book "Life of Love: A Joyful Guide to Self and Sensuality" that will transform how you approach wellbeing.

Julie introduces the p...

Kelly Hale, a 25-year veteran occupational therapist and nervous system regulation specialist, shares powerful yet simple movement techniques to help families shift from survival mode to a state of regulated calm. Through her Gutsy Brain Movement methodology, she combines developmental movements, nervous system regulation, and gut health practices to help people reconnect with their bodies and tap into their natural resilience.

Motivation naturally ebbs and flows throughout our lives - especially during the school year. What if you could harness those high-motivation moments to make the inevitable low-energy times easier? That's exactly what mindful motivation allows us to do.

This final episode in our summer skills series explores four practical strategies to leverage your back-to-school energy surge for long-term success. When we recognize...

Have you ever cringed when your child declared "I'm the worst!" during a challenging homework session? That moment of self-defeating language offers a powerful opportunity for transformation—if you know how to respond.

The latest episode of the Summer Skills Series tackles reframing, a deceptively simple tool with profound impacts on how children view themselves during difficult moments. This technique separ...

Ever noticed how family conflicts spiral when everyone's talking but nobody's listening? Welcome to the Summer Skills Series on the Stress Nanny Podcast, where today we're diving into the transformative power of active listening.

Most of us think we listen well, but during heated moments with our children, we're often just waiting for our turn to speak or formulating rebuttals rather than truly hearing ...

Ever find yourself instantly regretting how you responded to your kids? Discover a simple yet effective tool to transform those reactive moments into opportunities for connection and understanding.

Chapter Summary:

00:20 Welcome to the Stress Nanny Podcast
01:03 The Importance of Emotional Intelligence
01:40 Understanding Response vs. Reaction
03:37 The Re-do Tool
05:00 Illustrating Emotional Intelligence
06:40 Im...