A big welcome to @Sunilla Noomi and @Andrew Nelson joining us this week 💚 Sunilla brings a strong sense of confidence and individuality, and it’s always lovely having people who aren’t afraid to be fully themselves in a community space. Andrew runs the group Parenting & Teaching CHILDREN and is clearly passionate about helping parents raise children with character, confidence, purpose, and emotional strength. I always appreciate connecting with others who care deeply about supporting families and creating positive change for children. Whether your approach is similar or completely different, I genuinely value having people here who care about children and parenting conversations. Everyone feel free to say hello below and introduce yourselves 👋

The concept of emotion An acquired psychological predisposition consisting of a complex set of emotions that drives an individual to engage in behavior appropriate to the object of the emotion. Characteristics of Emotion Emotion is characterized by being: - Deep - Slow to form - Slow to fade Therefore, fleeting love is a passing emotion, closer to lust. However, if it is repeated, it becomes an emotion, intensifying and strengthening. Children's Emotions: The first emotion that develops in a newborn is love for the mother, due to her frequent care. Then comes love for a toy or pet. Love for the father develops slightly later. As the child grows, their emotions shift towards abstract concepts such as love of goodness and love of knowledge. Emotions begin as individual, connected to the individual's own needs and feelings; that is, they love what brings them pleasure and comfort. As they grow older, their emotions become more social.

Trait: Five more minutes means nothing. Neither does ten. When they're in it, they're fully in it — and pulling them out feels like tearing something. What it can look like: Meltdown when a screen, game, or activity is ended without warning "Just a minute" stretching indefinitely and genuinely meaning it Inability to pause at a natural stopping point — there is no natural stopping point Transition from preferred activity being the hardest part of the whole day Seeming unreachable mid-flow — calls, requests, instructions not landing. This isn't necessarily addiction or defiance. Hyperfocus is a genuine neurological state — the AuDHD brain locks on and the mechanisms that signal "time to stop" don't fire the same way. Ending the activity isn't a choice they're refusing to make. It's a shift their brain hasn't been able to complete yet. Gentle guidance: Warn early and often — "ten minutes, then five, then we're done" Give the ending a shape — "one more level, then off" Avoid abrupt endings wherever possible — the transition needs a runway Let them finish a natural unit where you can — a life, a level, a chapter. A child who can't stop mid-flow isn't being defiant — their brain is still fully somewhere else. 🌿

Because it's rarely what people expect. It's not dramatic. It's not obvious. Most of the time it looks like a child who is doing really well. It looks like sitting still when every part of them wants to move. Answering questions when they don't have the words. Smiling when they're overwhelmed. Saying yes when they mean no. Holding in every big feeling until they're somewhere safe enough to fall apart. Masking is the performance of okay. And the children who are best at it? They're often the ones nobody worries about. Because from the outside, they're coping. But here's what people don't talk about enough — the release doesn't always look like an explosion. Some kids come home and rage. Some kids come home and just... go quiet. Withdraw. Become a smaller, flatter version of themselves. Not angry. Just gone. That's not a child who's fine. That's a child who has nothing left. The exhaustion is invisible. Until it isn't. This month we're pulling back the curtain on what masking and burnout really look like — and what's actually going on beneath the surface. Have you seen this in your child? Drop a 🕯️ below if this lands.

Welcome to Grounded Roots, @Katie Bamforth ! So glad you found your way here. You've joined at a great time — this month we're going deep on masking & burnout in kids, and it's going to be a good one 🕯️ Introduce yourself below if you'd like — we're a friendly bunch 🧡