Your Calm Parenting Path

Conflict is an inevitable part of family life. Whether it’s a bedtime battle, a sibling fight, or a disagreement with your child, these moments can leave everyone feeling frustrated and disconnected.
But what if one simple question could shift the entire energy of those moments?
In this episode, Nina is joined by conscious relationship coach, speaker and bestselling author Annmarie Chereso to explore how parents can move from reactivity to connection. 
Annmarie shares the powerful question she teaches parents and couples to help them recognise what’s really driving conflict and how to respond with greater awareness and compassion.

You’ll Learn
The simple question that can shift parenting conflict in the moment
Why most conflict is actually about unmet needs
How to recognise when fear is driving your reactions
What the “drama triangle” is and how families get stuck in it
Simple ways to bring curiosity and calm into difficult parenting moments
 
 Why This Episode Matters
When we’re overwhelmed or triggered, it’s easy to react in ways that create more conflict. This conversation offers a simple but powerful shift that can help parents pause, reflect, and reconnect with their children.
Because often, one small change in how we respond can completely transform the moment.
 
Small Shift for Big Impact
The next time you find yourself in a tense moment with your child, try shifting into curiosity.
Instead of jumping straight into fixing, correcting, or reacting, pause and gently ask yourself:
What might be going on for my child right now?
Curiosity creates space. And sometimes that small pause is enough to shift the entire interaction.
 
Take the Next Step
If you’d like to explore Annmarie’s work further, her book The Perfectly Imperfect Family dives deeper into many of the ideas shared in this episode.
And if you’re ready to bring more calm and connection into your parenting, I’d love to support you.
You can sign up to my mailing list at mindfulparentinglifestyle.com.au for practical tips and insights, or book a free chat to learn how we can work together.
 
 Links and Resources
Annmarie Chereso’s Website
The Perfectly Imperfect Family – Book
Little Seeds Journey – Children’s book

Let’s Connect
Want more support? Follow Nina on Instagram, or sign up for tips and updates at mindfulparentinglifestyle.com.au
Have a question or parenting challenge you'd like addressed on the podcast? Send a DM or an email.
Follow Nina on Instagram
Website: mindfulparentinglifestyle.com.au
Email: [email protected]
 
About the Hosts
Nina Visic is a mindful parenting coach, educator and mum of three who helps overwhelmed parents move from reactive parenting to calm, confident connection with their children through mindfulness and practical tools. 
In this episode, Nina speaks with Annmarie Chereso, a conscious relationship coach, speaker and bestselling author of The Perfectly Imperfect Family and the children’s book Little Seeds Journey, who has spent over two decades helping families navigate conflict and build more connected relationships.

Ever had a reaction to your child that felt bigger than the moment?
In this episode, we explore what’s really happening underneath your parenting triggers - and why it’s often not about the shoes, the whining, or the sibling fight at all.

You’ll Learn
What a parenting trigger actually is (and what’s happening in your brain)
The three common roots of parenting triggers
 Why awareness - not perfection - is the first step toward change
A simple way to observe your reactions without judgment
 
Why This Episode Matters
Parenting triggers don’t mean you’re failing. They’re signals. When we understand our parenting triggers, we stop fighting ourselves and start responding with more clarity and compassion. Awareness strengthens the part of your brain that helps you pause next time.

Small Shift for Big Impact
Notice one trigger this week. Just one. When you feel that surge, gently ask: What is this really about? No fixing. No judging. Just curiosity.

Take the Next Step
Download the free Track Your Triggers Worksheet linked in the show notes. It’s a simple awareness tool to help you reflect and notice patterns.

Links and Resources
Free Track Your Triggers Worksheet
Episode 2. Can Mindfulness Really Stop the Yelling?
Episode 3. Is This the Most Underrated Parenting Tool?
Episode 12. Are You Really Listening? Part 1: Why Kids Stop Talking
Episode 13. Are You Really Listening To Your Child? Part 2: How to Be a Better Listener
Episode 15. Parenting Path in Action: When the School Calls

Let’s Connect
Want more support? Follow Nina on Instagram, or sign up for tips and updates at mindfulparentinglifestyle.com.au
Have a question or parenting challenge you'd like addressed on the podcast? Send a DM or an email.
Follow Nina on Instagram
Website: mindfulparentinglifestyle.com.au
Email: [email protected]

About the Host
Nina is a mindful parenting coach and mum who supports overwhelmed parents to move from reactivity to connection. After experiencing her own cycle of frustration and guilt, she discovered that awareness - not control - was the missing piece.
Through practical tools grounded in mindfulness and neuroscience, Nina helps parents understand what’s happening beneath their reactions so they can parent with more calm, confidence, and compassion. Her work focuses on small, sustainable shifts that create lasting change in family relationships.

Ever find yourself comparing your motherhood journey to someone else’s?
In this episode, I’m joined by Pam and Zana from the Careers and Cartwheels podcast - and honestly, this conversation felt like a breath of fresh air. 
Their honesty, humour and deep respect for each other’s different parenting paths made this such a lovely, grounding chat.
Pam navigates a busy career and a blended family of five kids. Zana homeschools her three boys and embraces home life. 
On paper, their days look completely different - but what shines through is this: we’re all on the same motherhood journey.

You’ll Learn
How comparison shows up in different seasons of motherhood
How working mums and stay-at-home mums experience pressure differently
Practical ways to move through mum guilt and pressure
Why kindness and community matter more than competition
Two small shifts that create big impact at home

Why This Episode Matters
It’s so easy to fall into “us vs them” thinking. But when we slow down and really listen, we realise we’re all juggling, all learning, and all doing our best. This episode is a reminder that you don’t have to justify your choices - and you don’t have to do this alone.

Small Shift for Big Impact
Try one of the beautiful tools shared in this episode:
Get down to your child’s level, acknowledge their big feelings and respond with empathy.
Or practise “stop, calm, respond” instead of reacting in the heat of the moment.
Notice how that changes the energy in your home.

Take the Next Step
If this conversation resonated, share it with a mum who might need the reminder. And don’t forget to subscribe to both Your Calm Parenting Path and Careers and Cartwheels.

Links and Resources
Careers and Cartwheels Podcast – Apple / Spotify 
Follow Careers and Cartwheels on Instagram 
Visit the Careers and Cartwheels website  

Let’s Connect
Want more support? Follow Nina on Instagram or sign up for tips and updates at mindfulparentinglifestyle.com.au.
Have a question or parenting challenge you'd like addressed on the podcast? Send a DM or an email.
Follow Nina on Instagram
Website: mindfulparentinglifestyle.com.au
Email: [email protected]

About the Hosts
Nina is a mindful parenting coach and mum who supports overwhelmed parents to feel calmer, more confident and more connected in their motherhood journey. She believes small shifts make a big impact - especially when we choose curiosity, empathy and regulation over perfection.
 
Pam and Zana, co-hosts of Careers and Cartwheels, are two mums parenting from very different places - one balancing career and blended family life, the other immersed in homeschooling and home life. Through open, respectful conversations, they’re building a space where mums can feel seen, understood and supported, no matter which path they choose.

In this episode, Nina shares something vulnerable and real: she’s noticed she hasn’t been as calm as she was mid last year. Over the school holidays, her mindfulness practice slowly slipped, and she felt the impact - more frustration, more reactivity, and less patience. Nina shares what’s been happening behind the scenes, and what she’s gently putting back in place to help her come back to calm.
 
 
You’ll Learn
How calm can fade through a “slow drift” (without noticing at first)
Why capacity matters (work, tiredness, kids getting older)
Why this isn’t failure - it’s feedback
What Nina is doing to rebuild her foundation: a morning anchor, an evening reset, and micro-pauses
 
Why This Episode Matters
When your calm slips, it’s easy to think you’re failing - but calm isn’t something we achieve once. It’s something we come back to, again and again. This episode is your reminder that you’re human, and you can return gently.
 
One Small Shift
Try Nina’s 3-minute morning anchor: three minutes before checking your phone - even imperfectly — to reconnect and steady yourself.
 
Take The Next Step
If you’re thinking “I know what to do, but I can’t stick with it,” you can book a free 30-minute clarity call to talk about what’s been happening for you and whether coaching feels like the right next step. 
 
Links And Useful Resources
Book a free chat with Nina
Listen to Episode 1 - Can Mindfulness Really Stop the Yelling?
Listen to Episode 9 - Can Mindful Parenting Really Make a Difference?
Listen to Episode 29 – What If You’re Just Too Tired to Be Mindful?
 
Let’s connect
Follow Nina on Instagram
Website: mindfulparentinglifestyle.com.au
Email: [email protected]

About The Host
Nina is a mindful parenting coach and mum who helps overwhelmed parents move from reactive and stressed to calm, confident, and connected - with tools that fit real life.
 
In this episode, Nina shares her personal experience of noticing her calm slipping, what was underneath it, and how she’s rebuilding her regulation foundation gently - without the pressure of perfection.
 
She believes calm isn’t a personality trait - it’s a practice that can be returned to, again and again.

Co-parenting after separation is often presented as the ideal – but what if it feels impossible? In this episode, Nina is joined by Emma Cannon, mum of three and founder of Higher Swing, to explore an alternative approach: parallel parenting. 
Together, they unpack why co-parenting doesn’t always work, how parallel parenting after separation can reduce conflict, and how parents can create calmer, safer homes that support children’s wellbeing.
 
You’ll Learn:
The difference between co-parenting and parallel parenting
Why co-parenting isn’t always realistic after separation
How parallel parenting after separation can reduce conflict
Practical boundaries that protect your energy and confidence
Why supporting yourself first supports your child

Why This Episode Matters
Many parents feel pressure to “get along” after separation, even when communication feels stressful or unsafe. This episode offers reassurance that there is another way. Parallel parenting after separation allows parents to focus on their own home, values, and healing – without ongoing conflict.
 
One Small Shift
Start with one small shift that supports you. Notice where you feel most triggered or dysregulated, and choose one moment this week to pause, name your feelings, and respond with intention. When parents work on their own emotional regulation and repair, children learn those skills too.
 
Take the Next Step
If this conversation resonated, you might like to explore the family wellbeing programs available through Higher Swing.
Or, if you’d like personalised support, you can book a free chat with Nina to take the next step toward calmer, more confident parenting.

Links and Resources 
Sign up to Higher Swing's mailing list or check out their programs here 
Follow Higherswing on Instagram

Let’s Connect
Follow Nina on Instagram
Website: mindfulparentinglifestyle.com.au
Email: [email protected]
 
About the Hosts
Nina is a mindful parenting coach, mum, and host of Your Calm Parenting Path. She supports overwhelmed parents to move from reactive parenting to calm, confident, and connected relationships with their children.
Emma Cannon is a mum of three and the founder of Higher Swing, an Australian platform connecting families with proactive wellbeing programmes for children, parents, and schools. Her work supports families through life’s challenges – from everyday struggles to major transitions like separation or divorce.