Circle of Security® Parenting™ program
Struggling with managing your child's behaviour?
The Circle of Security® Parenting™ program is an evidence-based attachment program which reflects over 50 years of parenting research. The program helps you reflect on the way you were parented and gives you the knowledge and skills to look beyond your child’s immediate behaviour to build a secure attachment.
Do you have this really clear vision in your mind of the kind of parent you want to be? Gentle, kind, compassionate. Sound right?
Then your child displays behaviour that’s probably very normal and age appropriate but you turn into the opposite kind of parent.
You yell. You scream. You cry. You might grab your child and handle him or her physically in a way that’s a bit too rough. You might even smack.
Your child is screaming. You are furious. You are crying, and you might have sunk down onto the floor in exhaustion from the whole mental battle.
The guilt sets in. You don’t want to parent this way. You feel so incredibly bad for the words you said, for the way you yelled, and the way you ‘man-handled’ your precious child.
You are exhausted and at your wits end. How are you supposed to do this parenting gig in the ‘gentle, kind, attachment parenting’ way?
You worry that you are damaging your child for life.
It can leave you feeling like a failure as a parent. Sound familiar?
It can be hard to get past your child's behaviour, especially when it's pushing all your buttons and triggering a range of emotions in you.
Behaviours in young children - like tantrums, not listening and being physically aggressive - are common. We know that children show their emotions through their behaviour, and their brains are not yet developed for them to regulate their own emotions. They need our help.
Children thrive when they feel safe, seen, soothed and secure. They grow into their best selves when they are closely connected to the adults around them, when they feel heard, and when they feel understood.
Do people tell you that you will make a rod for your own back if you don’t follow through with punishing your child for their behaviour? Generational parenting saw the use of punishment to get children to obey. Research now tells us that this form of parenting doesn’t help children develop emotional security.
For many parents, using punishments like time outs, smacking and grounding means that the connection between the parent and child gets broken. It means the child doesn’t always feel secure. How do you possibly help the child feel secure in those moments when the child’s behaviour makes you feel ALL.THE.EMOTIONS?
Would you like to learn how to look past the behaviour and see your child? Would you like a DIFFERENT way to respond?
At the Circle of Security® Parenting™ program I will help you reflect on the way you were parented and build that bridge between your own childhood experiences and how you are parenting now. The program gives you insight into WHY your child behaves in a negative way, and then helps you learn how to respond. Most importantly, it helps build a really secure attachment between you and your child so that they have the ability to form positive relationships as they enter adolescence and adulthood.
Imagine if your child is acting out and you didn’t see him or her as the problem any longer? What if you confidently knew how to manage the situation to calm your child and move forward? Imagine the relief and gratitude your child will respond with when you can ‘be with’ them in their needs. Sounds good, doesn’t it?
What is Circle of Security® Parenting™ Program?
The internationally acclaimed Circle of Security® Parenting™ program is an evidence-based attachment program which reflects over 50 years of research on the long-term impact of the parent/child relationship in the early years and attachment theory and takes the guess work out of parenting. It is now delivered worldwide to parents of children aged 4 months to 6 years and beyond.
You will receive essential training through DVD clips and reflective questioning, based on the Circle of Security graphic and intervention model.
About the program
The Circle of Security® Parenting™ Program is run on a one-to-one basis for individual parents or couples where we have the ability to focus solely on your family and your child/ren.
It is preferable for you to find child care for your child/ren so that you can fully focus on the content of the course. However, at times parents may need to have children present and we can be flexible around this.
This program includes:
8 x 1 hour sessions
Workbook and handouts
Certificate of completion (must attend all sessions to receive this)
The Circle of Security® Parenting™ Program can be run face to face or online depending on your location or preference.
After the workshop, you will be able to
Identify the lifelong benefits of a secure relationship with your child
Recognise and understand your child's emotional needs
Respond to difficult behaviours in ways that create resilience
Cease the battles of 'will'
Identify your child's emotional needs
Support your child's independence
Support your child's need for closeness and intimacy
Promote the development of empathy in your child
Understand why sometimes your child's behaviours cause strong reactions in you
Discover a new way to handle your child's emotional 'meltdowns'
Discover a new approach to take when your child 'acts' out’
How to Join the Circle of Security® Parenting™ Program?
Please click the below button to secure your place in the Circle of Security® Parenting™ Program or to make further enquiries.
“I recently completed the Circle of Security® Parenting™ program with Karen O’Mara from Making Mama Village. It was a program I was wanting to do for a quite a while and the timing felt right as my child had recently turned one. I had already attended Karen’s mothers group for babies, so I was familiar with her style of delivery. Karen delivered the Circle of Security® Parenting™ program in a very open and warm setting with only a small group of attendees. Everyone felt comfortable and had the opportunity to share their parenting experiences and challenges with ease throughout. Karen presented the program with empathy, nurturing, attentiveness and respect. The program has certainly given me the awareness to parent with attachment and security at the forefront. It made me realise how we were parented can have a profound impact on our own children. By being able to understand this and have that awareness, it has given me the courage to parent in a way which has empathy, integrity and is respectful to both the parent and child. The Circle of Security® Parenting™ program is an investment in not only my child’s future, but also my own. A must for every new parent!”
— Leisl, mother of Alexander, 17 months
Meet the presenter
Karen O’Mara
Karen is a clinical social worker with more than 25 years experience working with families and is a member of the Australian Association of Social Workers. Karen has worked extensively with families in child protection, as well as in social work positions in maternity and children's hospitals in intensive care and emergency departments supporting families and children impacted by grief, loss, trauma, crisis and bereavement. Karen is a registered Circle of Security® Parenting™ facilitator and her work is informed by attachment and family systems theory. In her business she provides perinatal counselling and parenting support. Karen is passionate about the Circle of Security® Parenting™ program because she sees the difference it makes in the lives of families.
