Safety comes before everything else
Hurray! It's February - hopefully you are seeing a small shift as we leave January behind us.
Small steps :)
...because our nervous systems don’t move straight from overwhelm to engagement.
They move through safety first.
When a child feels unsettled, avoidant, explosive, or withdrawn, it’s rarely because they won’t engage.
It’s because their nervous system still isn’t sure it’s safe enough to do so.
And safety isn’t created through strategies, consequences, or encouragement.
It’s created through felt experience:
Predictability.
Attunement.
Being understood.
Knowing that big feelings don’t threaten connection.
This is why progress can feel slow.
Safety takes repetition.
And it’s why February at EPT is about strengthening safety before expecting more from ourselves or our children.
👉 Weekly Nervous System Nudge
A Supportive Strategy from Me to You
✨ This week, we prioritise safety signals before expectations.
We might try:
“We’re not in a rush.”
“You’re safe with me.”
“We’ll figure this out together.”
Safety first.
Everything else grows from there.
If things aren’t moving forward yet, that doesn’t mean we’re stuck.
It often means safety is still settling.
And that matters.
Your Child and Adolescent Educational Psychologist,
Lorraine Xx
P.S. In the Membership this week, we will be covering 5 practical ways to impliment this weeks Nervous System Nudge - We keep what supports regulation and let go of what adds pressure.
Members, please login and go to your newsfeed to this weeks 5 strategies.
To join the Membership, click below:
Neurodiversity Parenting Membership
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