Pop Culture Parenting

Few episodes are more important and full of practical tips than this one! In this re-listen we reflect on what we can do to support our kids in healthy sleep. Poor sleep impacts 30-40% of children with up to 80% of neurodivergent children experiencing childhood insomnia. We hope you like this PCP Guide and please listen to the reflection episode 20 as it's full of gold form the beautiful PCP community. We hope this helps your child sleep better and succeed more in their waking hours.

Well this is a big one folks! Thanks to so many amazing questions, reflections and advice about motivating our kids this episode is jam packed with PCP gold. Dr Nick gets a little emotional at the end as he reads out guiding advice from an amazing paediatric OT about how he brings motivation and strength into his work with children and the families who support them. We hope this episode helps to guide the kids you love and care for and thanks for guiding us too.

This was a big re-listen. This episode was first released two and a half years ago following an email from an amazing parent trying to find a way through supporting their child after another child had made them feel different and less worthy of being celebrated. This movie helps remind us that kindness, seeing the best in people and loving unashamedly are the qualities we should elevate above intellect or power. We hope you like it and please join us on Patreon for additional resources we are building and a live Q&A to conclude this PCP Guides series on...

So many kids struggle with focusing impacting their learning, relationships and self-esteem. In this PCP Guide we look back to an episode from over 3 years ago that explores how we can best support these kids in our homes, school and the broader community. We hope it helps and please come over to our free patreon community to learn more together.

PCP Guides: supporting neurodivergent kids part 1 is out! Hi beautiful PCP community! We asked you what you'd like us to cover in future episodes and so many of you asked for topics we have covered in our 4 year back catalogue. After a team huddle we are excited to announce PCP Guides!!! We will reflect on previous episodes covering requested topics with a reflection at the beginning, new resources within our free patreon community and a live Q&A to diver deeply into where the textbooks meet real life. First cab off the rank is neurodiversity and in part 1 we look...

To kick off the year we explore the key components to goal setting and motivation to help set the kids we care about up for success. We talk about why this matters, the common pitfalls and how to put the science into practice in the real world. From building this early in kids to helping the out the teens who are stuck in amotivation. We are so excited to be back and we can't wait to read your reflections, questions and advice. Special thanks to our sponsor Sound Slam for supporting this episode. Sound Slam is a beautiful card game...

In our final episode of the year we answer some important short questions about how we can have impact in the face of difficult challenges in the world right now. We then read out the reflections from some of the beautiful PCP community who generously share their journey. As always there is laughter and tears. Thank you all for being a part of PCP in 2025. We feel privileged to share this community with you and hope you are able to slow down and rest over the coming weeks. See you in 2026 to face the challenges and celebrate the wislows together...

In our final topic of 2025 we explore what impacts the kids we care about in terms of their development and mental health. We explore the science and Dr Nick treats us to his big lessons from PCP this year. Please send in your best reflections, questions and advice for our reflection episode to share with the wonderful PCP community.

This is a big one folks. In this ep Nick & Billy dive deep into how we can build hope in our kids at different ages and levels of development, how hope is different to optimism and resilience, and how it can be used following set backs and failure. We discuss hope in the setting of heartbreaking experiences such as school expulsion, trauma, suicidal thinking and grief. As always we also read beautiful reflections and advice that bring laughter and tears. Thank you to everyone for sharing your experience with such honesty, vulnerability and courage. Your strength to keep trying to...

Hope is an essential part of life that keeps us moving forward, especially during adversity. It's not a feeling but a skill that kids can learn if we know how to guide them. In this episode we discuss the importance of hope, how it changes through life and how the research can be used in the real world to help develop it in our kids. We hope you like it and we can't wait to read your reflections, questions and advice.

In true form to the topic this reflection episode is rather playful between Nick and Billy as they explore how to play with kids. We discuss why it can be tough, how to target specific struggles, the role of educators and how play changes from kids to teens. As always there are beautiful reflections, questions and tips from the wonderful PCP community. Thank you as always and we hope you like it.

Play is one of the most important aspects of child development and mental health. Unfortunately many of us struggle to know HOW to play with kids. In this episode we discuss exactly how we can use play with children and teens to build skills in communication, empathy, emotional regulation and so much more. We hope you like the episode and we can't wait to read your reflections, questions and advice. Special thanks to our sponsor Hot Wheels for supporting this episode and helping us keep the conversations rolling ❤️ Hot Wheels is all about helping kids build confidence and resilience through play...

In this special episode we talk with the phenomenal Dr Tina Payne Bryson, New York Times best-selling author, psychotherapist, researcher and wonderful human. Tina helps us understand how the science can be translated into practical strategies regarding emotional difficulties, attachment, neurodiversity, trauma and so much more. Thank you Tina for your generosity and if you somehow don't know her work please check her out. As you can tell in the beginning of this episode Billy is a HUGE FAN.

In this reflection episode we discuss how we can set our kids up to succeed through their teens, how to spot when something is wrong and what we can do to help. We also chat about how to support teens through bullying, keeping things from us, finding their identity, phones and much more! Thank you to everyone who sent in questions, advice and reflections, we hope this episode honours your story.

Adolescence is an important developmental window during which identity is explored and relationships are strengthened. It can also be a turbulent time during which mental illness spikes and the kids we care about become lost. Luckily there is so much we can do to prepare ourselves and our younger kids for this period. The evidence can also guide us if we are currently supporting a teen even if it all seems hopeless. We hope you like this latest episode and we can't wait for your reflections, questions and advice.

In this reflection episode we hear from PCP listeners who generously share their stories of survival with reflections, questions and advice. It's a vulnerable conversation with an emotional ending but we hope it helps people find the kindness and compassion for themselves that we work on for ourselves. Thank you to everyone who contributed, we feel so lucky to have you in the area with us!

This episode is a little different to our others. PCP aims to guide us all about how we can better support the kids in our lives. Sometimes though the weight of doing better can be too much. In this honest chat we talk about sometimes needing to just survive and how best to do that without feeling like a gladiator constantly fighting in the arena. We hope this helps lighten that burden and we can't wait to hear your reflections, questions and advice.

In our second reflection episode about nurturing neurodiversity we dive into the science of neurodiversity and how it can be used in the real world to support the kids in our lives. We hear from exceptional educators about how to best support neurodivergent students, discuss research about pathological demand avoidance (PDA) and explore mental health and trauma relating to neurodiversity. We end on a message that can help all of us understand the power of inclusion. We hope you like it and thank you to everyone who sent in their stories. It's a privilege to read them and we wish...

In this part 1 reflection episode we discuss how the evidence can guide us regarding many of the challenges neurodivergent kids face. We cover questions about masking, rejection sensitive dysphoria, neurodiversity and emotional sensitivity, fitting in, medication and many more. Thank you for the wonderful questions, reflections and advice that the amazing PCP community sent in. We hope you like it and we can't wait to dive into this topic even further in the next reflection episode.

After so many requests from the amazing PCP community we are diving back in to talk about neurodiversity and how we can better support these beautiful kids. We discuss how movies, beliefs and a deficit approach can cause harm and limit potential. We dive into how we can help neurodivergent children and teens feel safe and experience success using the science in the real world. We can not wait to hear your reflections, questions and advice on nurturing neurodiversity as it's our favourite part of the podcast.

In this reflection episode we go deeper into conflict resolution using reflections, questions and advice from the wonderful PCP community. We explore how we can support conflict resolution at different developmental stages from toddlers to teens, what schools can do and how we can work on this within ourselves. Thank you to everyone who sent in their messages and we hope you like the episode.

Dealing with conflict can be a big challenge of life and lead to damage within ourselves, our relationships and the broader community. We first learn how to deal with conflict during childhood and unfortunately often in unhealthy ways. Luckily there is so much we can do to guide kids though these tough times. In this episode Nick & Billy discuss why it's important and how we can better resolve conflicts in a healthy way. We hope you like it and can't wait to read your reflections, questions and advice.

In this episode we blast off into the future fuelled by wonderful reflections, questions and guidance from the beautiful PCP community. We discuss ways to move from anxiety to action, frustration tolerance, worries and neurodiversity, potential pitfalls (good old resilience) and our own fear about the future regarding the kids we care about. Thank you to everyone who sent in messages and questions. You give us so much hope!

Worries about the future are a common source of stress for kids and a tricky topic for those supporting them to navigate. From typical concerns to clinical anxiety it is important that we have tools we can use to help children when these challenges arise. In this episode we discuss how important our beliefs and behaviours about the future are, including in the media, in regards to how worried or hopeful we might be. We also discuss common concerns and one therapeutic approach that can help guide kids when these difficulties emerge. We can't wait to read your questions, reflections...

In part 3 of our Beautiful Boys topic we honour some of the powerful stories and insights from the amazing PCP community who continue to guide and inspire us. We also cover some important questions, hear about practical advice and end on a the story of beautiful man who provides a north star for those of us trying to find our way.

In the first of two reflections about how we can raise beautiful boys Nick and Billy explore some of the amazing reflections, questions and tips from the PCP community. We cover how we can push back against some of the damage patriarchy inflicts on us, how to guide growing minds towards healthier versions of masculinity and the importance of emotional understanding and expression in young boys. We hope you find this helpful and we look forward to diving even deeper in second reflection episode next week.

Boys and girls learn from a young age that they are different because of how caregivers and our broader society treats them. This inequity is destructive to all of us, especially in regards to mental illness, developmental trauma and intimate partner violence. As heartbreaking as the stories and statistics are there is so much we can do to better guide our growing boys that supports them and all their future relationships. We are really excited to read your reflections, questions and advice to guide a deeper discussion next episode into how we can all do this better.

In this reflection episode we answer questions about connection from how we do it with ourselves, our partners, newborn babies, dysregulated children and reluctant teens. As always we are humbled by the beautiful reflections, inspired by powerful stories and guided by amazing advice. Thank you PCP and we hope you connect with this latest episode.

Connection is an important first step in guiding our kids but one that is often misunderstood or missed entirely. In this episode we discuss why it matters and how we can give ourselves the best chance to connect with the kids we care about to guide them through the tough times. We hope you like it and can't wait to hear your reflections, questions and advice.

We had an amazing evening celebrating our 100th episode and we hope you enjoy it as an episode. You can also watch the entire event on our youtube channel too! We forgot to read out the poll questions so we've included them below with answers. Thank you all for an amazing 100 episodes and episode 101 will be out in early Feb 2025. Check out our Patreon in the mean time as we grow our community there too ❤️ LIVE SHOW POLL 1. Favourite part of PCP? Advice - 1st Friendship & community - 2nd Jokes and fashion - 3rd 2. If they were to remake Legends of t...

Love is in the air in this episode with beautiful reflections, honest questions and overwhelming feedback about love. Please have tissues ready as we both needed them multiple times in this heartfelt journey through a small fraction of the amazing emails and messages that were sent to us on this important topic. Thank you to everyone who has shared this journey with us over the last 3 years. We hope you like this episode and we love being a part of the PCP community.

For the final topic of the year Nick & Billy discuss a subject close to their hearts. Interstellar & love is an adventurous exploration of the science of love and how it can guide us in supporting the children in our lives. Please send in your questions about love, reflections on your own experience and tips to help all of us navigating this space. It's been a wild spaceship ride and we love all of you for sharing it with us.

Well it's a big episode this week full of laughs and tears. So many inspiring stories of hope, honesty about the challenges of resilience and hopefully some helpful discussion about how we can all support the kids in our community. Thank you to everyone who sent in questions. We feel so privileged to be a part of the PCP community.

One of the best movies paired with one of the most important topics. In this episode we discuss the evidence regarding resilience, how is can be developed in real life (and in Shawshank State Penitentiary) without leading to failure and further harm. We hope you enjoy this chat and we can't wait to hear your reflections, questions and tips!

In this reflection episode we dive into the application of parenting style research through the life course from babies to teens and of course all of us as adults just trying to get a little better at this each day. It's no surprise that the reflections, questions and advice sent in by the gorgeous PCP community once again is the podcasts greatest asset. Thank you to everyone who sent in messages, this one was a rollercoaster emotionally but hopefully it helps you too.

This week's episode is so fetch. Nick and Billy discuss the amazing movie Mean Girls and the research around parenting style that led to Regina George. We reflect on our own style and role play different approaches to see the research in action. We hope you enjoy our chat and we can't wait to read your reflections, questions and tips!

Big feelings reflection part 2 is filled with heartfelt questions, reflections and tips from the amazing PCP community. We discuss tough behaviours and hurtful words, what we can say and strategies we can use to allow our kids (and us) to have big feelings without suffering from their impact on us and those around us. We hope you enjoy & thank you to everyone who contributed!

Huge reflection episode with vulnerable questions, heartfelt feedback and practical tips from listeners. We also celebrate a big milestone so thanks to the amazing PCP community for all of your support. Too many great questions to cover in one reflection so we will dive deep into big feelings again next episode!

This episode Nick and Billy chose the red pill and dive into big feelings in ourselves and our kids. We discuss whats happening with big feelings (such as anger, fear and guilt), the impact they can have on our lives and the steps of emotional self-regulation. This one felt personal for both of us but we hope it helps you too. We can't wait to read your reflections, questions and words of advice!

Once again the PCP community delivers amazing reflections, questions and advice. We talk practically about moral development, empathy and theory of mind through early childhood to late teens. There is lots of laughter, tears and hopefully some helpful guidance in how to support this important aspect of child development. Thank you to all the wonderful people who contributed!