Have you ever found yourself saying to your child, "You're OK, don't cry," whilst knowing you mean well, but feeling like something deeper is happening?

This week’s Moment explores a powerful idea: we can only hold our children's emotions to the extent that we can hold our own. So many of us grew up believing resilience meant pushing through, staying strong and keeping it together. But what if real resilience is actually the opposite?

In this conversation, Zoe and Dr Alex George explore the emotional patterns we inherit, why so many of us struggle to sit with difficult feelings, and how learning to hold our own emotions changes the way we parent. There’s a moment where Zoe shares a huge realisation: the reason she struggled with her children’s big feelings wasn’t because of them - it was because no one had ever taught her how to handle her own.

If you've ever felt uncomfortable with your child's tears, frustration or meltdowns, this episode might help explain why.

💡 In this episode, you'll learn:

Why resilience isn't about "pushing through"
The parenting patterns we pass on without realising
Why many millennial parents were never taught emotional processing
How our early years shape the way we respond to stress
A simple reframe that can help you hold difficult feelings - yours and your child's

Listen now and see whether this changes the way you think about emotions, resilience and parenting.

Loved this episode?

Watch every full episode on YouTube and subscribe.

Follow or subscribe so you never miss an episode of Motherkind. It helps more mothers find the show and keeps our community growing.

If you enjoyed this episode, you can listen to the full episode - Why Raising Resilient Kids Starts With Us with Dr Alex George

Feeling different since becoming a mother? Get clarity on who you’re becoming now and download your FREE Matrescence Cheat Sheet

Connect with Zoe:

Follow Zoe on Instagram, LinkedIn and TikTok
Get Zoe’s Sunday Times bestselling book, 'Motherkind: A New Way to Thrive in a World of Endless Expectations’

This Motherkind episode is sponsored by:

Headline sponsor Wild Nutrition, the brand raising the bar for women’s supplements. Want to feel the Food-Grown difference yourself? Get 50% off for three months at wildnutrition.com/motherkind. Ts and Cs apply