Impact Complex Kids blog logo

Guiding parents and teachers to manage challenges with Complex Kids

 

In 2011, we started with a simple mission: to support parents who wanted to help their medically complex kids – kids with ADHD, anxiety, depression, learning disabilities, autism, sensory issues, and more -- reach their full potential. We hadn’t created the term ‘complex’ back then, and ‘special needs’ never seemed to fit. So starting as ImpactADHD®, a condition our families shared, we created the first global online resource for parenting kids who didn’t ‘fit the mold’. Complex kids are quirky, or complicated, or (cont'd below)

Filter by Focus Area

Leading Articles about Managing Complex Kids

This Too Shall Pass

By Elaine Taylor-Klaus

I wear a pendant around my neck that gets me through everything. A quote from the Song of Solomon, in…

CONTINUED
child blames everyone

It’s Your Fault

By Diane Dempster

I recently had a conversation with a client about her son. She explained, “that child blames everyone else when he…

CONTINUED
Special-Needs Friendly Santa

Special Needs Friendly Santa Tips for Parents

By Elaine Taylor-Klaus

By (special needs friendly) Santa Claus (with support from Elaine Taylor-Klaus) A Christmas Surprise I had a rare treat, recently,…

CONTINUED

5 Magic Words: What Is Most Important Here?

By Diane Dempster

Transition times can be an absolute nightmare for parents of complex kids. Whether it’s the end of the school year,…

CONTINUED
career readiness in teens

Fostering Career Readiness in Teens

By Jodie Hurst

Navigating the journey from adolescence to adulthood brings different experiences for everyone. Some young adults transition into further education or…

CONTINUED
kids with no clear diagnosis

Raising Complex Kids With No Clear Diagnosis

By Elaine Taylor-Klaus

The first ten years of my life as a parent really sucked. No, they didn’t really suck. It’s more like,…

CONTINUED
empathy

Empathy: A Magic Wand to Connect with Complex Kids & Teens

By Elaine Taylor-Klaus

“What is Empathy? And why is it VERY different from sympathy? Empathy fuels connection. Sympathy drives disconnection.” ~Brene Brown When…

CONTINUED
microbiome

What’s a Microbiome, Why Should I Care, and What Do I Do About It?

By Mary Virginia Coffman

What’s a microbiome?  Humans host 39 trillion microscopic organisms in every conceivable place in our bodies, from head to toe,…

CONTINUED

When Kids Have Trouble Hearing the Word No, Try This

By Elaine Taylor-Klaus and Diane Dempster

What do I do when my kids have trouble hearing the word “no”? How can I get them to accept…

CONTINUED

(continued) sensitive, or emotional, or hyperactive, or impulsive, or sensory – and there’s usually a medically complex explanation for their behaviors. We believe passionately that no parent should ever have to go through the journey of raising complex kids on their own. Parenting these complicated, fascinating young people doesn’t have to be isolating.

Complex kids struggle with fundamental aspects of life or learning. For their parents, traditional parenting methods often don’t work as effectively as we think they should. They may be helpful, but they always seem to fall short of really meeting our needs, which leaves us feeling inadequate, like we’re failing our kids. When our kids are different, they need something different from us.

At ImpactParents, we pledge to partner with parents and teachers to take the frustration out of daily life and guide you to manage daily challenges effectively, with confidence and good humor. This blog will introduce you to a proven method that relies on a coach approach – and it will support you in parenting, regardless of what ‘flavor’ of complex kid you are trying to support more effectively.

We’ll guide you to shift your expectations and communicate with less judgment and more acceptance. As a result, you’ll be able to give directions and offer advice without triggering defensive reactions. Your kids will see you as a member of their team and seek you out for guidance and support.

Regardless of whether your kids have autism, sensory issues, ADHD, learning challenges, or any of the many other mental health and learning challenges facing families today, the coach approach will help you become the parent you really want to be – the parent your children, teens and young adults need you to be. It will guide you to create the kind of relationship with your kids that you’ve always wanted.

Do you want to create lasting behavioral change? With this blog, we’ll guide you to lead your complex kids to become independent and successful adults, which is really what parenting is all about.