In this honest and inspiring conversation, Kyle and Sara Wester sit down with bestselling author Jessica N. Turner to talk about what happens when parenting and marriage don’t turn out the way you hoped. Jessica opens up about her own journey through disappointment and divorce, and how she rebuilt her life with intention, emotional healing, and hope. She shares lessons from her new book, I Thought It Would Be Better Than This , including how therapy, forgiveness, and open communication can help ...
May 12, 2025•36 min
In this episode, Kyle and Sara explore the power of the Relationship Bank Account (RBA) — a simple but transformative tool for strengthening your connection with your child. You’ll learn: What a Relationship Bank Account is (and why it matters) How to make daily “deposits” that build long-term trust and emotional security 10 practical ways to fill up your child’s RBA starting today What to do if your RBA is running low (or in overdraft) How RBA principles protect your relationship through confli...
May 05, 2025•31 min•Season 1Ep. 158
In this thought-provoking episode, Kyle and Sara Wester sit down with renowned author and speaker Alfie Kohn —a powerful voice challenging traditional ideas about parenting, discipline, education, and motivation. Alfie doesn’t hold back as he dives into the unintended consequences of using rewards, punishments, and even praise with children. His insights, grounded in decades of research, have radically reshaped how countless parents and educators approach behavior and discipline. This conversati...
Apr 28, 2025•34 min•Season 1Ep. 157
In this episode, we’re digging into the quiet beliefs many of us bring into parenting—assumptions we didn’t even realize were shaping how we saw our kids. Kyle and Sara reflect on the messages they heard early on in their parenting journey: from well-meaning friends, family, and culture at large. Many of these ideas—like needing to “control” kids, stop “bad” behavior, or “show them who’s boss”—can subtly influence how we respond to our children’s needs, mistakes, and development. But what if man...
Apr 21, 2025•31 min•Season 1Ep. 156
In Episode #155 of Art of Raising Humans , Sara and Kyle sit down with pediatric neuropsychologists, Dr. Yale Rothman and Dr. Katie Fredriksen, to explore a crucial and timely topic — how to talk with kids about autism. In this episode, we discuss a thoughtful, kid-friendly book co-authored by Dr. Rothman and Dr. Fredriksen that helps children with autism understand how their brains work — and supports neurotypical children in understanding and connecting with autistic peers. This conversation s...
Apr 14, 2025•37 min•Season 1Ep. 155
In this episode of The Art of Raising Humans , Kyle and Sara explore one of the most common questions they get from parents: “Is it really possible to discipline without punishment or consequences like time-outs, threats, or spanking?” When they became parents, Kyle and Sara struggled to imagine parenting without those tools—they believed punishment was an essential part of discipline. But as they dug deeper into the research and began working with families, they discovered that true discipline ...
Apr 07, 2025•39 min•Season 1Ep. 154
In Episode #153 of The Art of Raising Humans , we sit down with award-winning author and children’s mental health advocate Jamie Edelbrock. When Jamie’s daughter was struggling, she realized that the best way to support her was to start working on her own anxiety and past trauma. She shares her journey of self-discovery and healing, and how it transformed both her life and her parenting. Jamie is the author of Tangled Up, Be the Sparkle, and The Adventures of Little Selfie . As a Behavior Analys...
Mar 31, 2025•32 min•Season 1Ep. 153
In Episode #152 of the Art of Raising Humans , Kyle and Sara tackle one of the biggest sources of division and tension in families—triangulation. They break down what it is, why it fuels constant conflict, and how it can quietly damage family relationships. But more importantly, they share practical, intentional steps parents can take to coach their kids in healthy conflict resolution. Learning to navigate disagreements effectively is a life skill that sets kids up for stronger relationships now...
Mar 24, 2025•33 min•Season 1Ep. 152
In this episode of The Art of Raising Humans , Kyle and Sara break down the biggest mistakes parents make when supporting their kids in sports and extracurricular activities. They reveal the #1 reason kids walk away and what they really need from us to stay engaged and confident. Whether your child is a serious athlete or just trying new things, this conversation will help you show up for them in the best way possible! Get our video courses at https://art-of-raising-humans.newzenler.com . View t...
Mar 17, 2025•38 min•Season 1Ep. 151
In Episode #150 of the “Art of Raising Humans”, Sara and I interview the co-author of a brand new book called “The Way of Play”. She is a nationally recognized play therapy expert. Georgie is the Founder/Director of The Play Strong Institute, a center devoted to the study, research, and practice of play therapy through a neurodevelopment lens, along with Dr. Bryson, the Founder/Executive Director of The Center for Connection, a multidisciplinary clinical practice in Southern California. Georgie ...
Mar 15, 2025•48 min•Season 1Ep. 150
In Episode #149 of the “Art of Raising Humans”, Sara and I have a blast getting to talk with Dr. Anthony DeBenedet. Dr. Anthony is a practicing gastroenterologist, author, and behavioral-science enthusiast. He is the author of Playful Intelligence: The Power of Living Lightly in a Serious World, a book about the surprising ways that playfulness influences adulthood. He is also coauthor of Unplug and Play: The Ultimate Illustrated Guide to Roughhousing with Your Kids and The Art of Roughhousing: ...
Mar 03, 2025•41 min•Season 1Ep. 149
In Episode #148 of the “Art of Raising Humans”, Sara and I have an informative and entertaining interview with Holly Blanc Moses. Holly is a neurodivergent therapist and speaker. Over the last 27 years, she’s been supporting neurodivergent children, teens, adults, and their families in the areas of emotional regulation, anxiety, depression, social interaction, and school success. Holly hosts The Autism ADHD Podcast, providing helpful information for parents, educators, and mental health therapis...
Feb 24, 2025•39 min•Season 1Ep. 148
In Episode 147, Kyle and Sara, LPC’s, share the 4th core principal of how we parent and how we coach other parents. When we look at all the science and research that has been conducted over the past several decades about parenting, the most powerful and important part of it seems to come down to one thing - Connection. With a strong and healthy connection our children are more receptive and open to our guidance and our love. When the connection becomes strained or weakened then the relationship ...
Feb 17, 2025•32 min•Season 1Ep. 147
In Episode 146, Kyle and Sara, LPC’s, share the 3rd core principal of how we parent and how we coach other parents. Most parenting approaches we were exposed to early on in our parenting, and also most therapeutic approaches being used with children had a “Child first” approach. All the different ‘child first” approaches started with what the child was doing wrong and then finding a way to change it. The “parent first” approach gives the power back to the parents and equips them with the tools t...
Feb 10, 2025•30 min•Season 1Ep. 146
In Episode 145, Kyle and Sara, LPC’s, connect with Dr. Cam Caswell a.k.a. “The Teen Translator”. As an adolescent psychologist and parent of a teen, she knows the struggles of navigating those tough years firsthand. As a private practitioner, TEDx speaker, podcast host, and author, she offers hope and practical strategies to help parents unlock their teen’s confidence and resilience, build deeper, stronger connections with them, and foster a positive home environment. In this conversation, she s...
Feb 03, 2025•46 min•Season 1Ep. 145
In Episode 144, Kyle and Sara, LPC’s, talk with cyber security expert and guru Fareedah Shaheed. She shares her story about how she became passionate about cyber security after she was almost abducted by a predator. She has been featured on NBC, CNN, Fox, and many others. She has worked with companies such as Meta, NASA, and LinkedIn. She is currently serving on Forbes board for the Under 30 community. We talk with her about the number one thing parents can do to keep their kids safe online. She...
Jan 27, 2025•52 min•Season 1Ep. 144
In Episode 143, Kyle and Sara, LPC’s, delve into the second part of our Core Four series. Now that we have discussed the brain, let’s start talking about behavior and emotions. Most of us were raised in homes where the discipline techniques used by the parents were behavior based. Over the past 40 years we have a better understanding of what lies behind the behaviors. The behavior is really just a symptom of an underlying problem. When we coach parents, we want them to know how to look past the ...
Jan 20, 2025•35 min•Season 1Ep. 143
In Episode 142, Kyle and Sara, LPC’s, start 2025 with the first of four podcasts where we share what we are calling our Core Four (don’t know if we will stick with that or not). These are 4 parenting principles we found were crucial in helping us move away from using fear, punishment, and shame with our kids. In this first part of the series we dive into helping our listeners understand their child’s developing brain and the science of interpersonal neurobiology. I know that sounds really scient...
Jan 13, 2025•39 min•Season 1Ep. 142
In Episode 141, Kyle and Sara, LPC’s, interview Kirk Martin, he is the founder and host of the Calm Parenting Podcast. He is also fast becoming an Instagram influencer with 800k followers listening to his sage wisdom. He has currently helped almost 1,000,000 parents stop yelling, defiance, and power struggles. In this interview he shares how the tools and strategies he was using with his son were destroying his relationship with him. Kirk then gives us some his favorite ways to shift moments of ...
Jan 06, 2025•42 min•Season 1Ep. 141
In Episode 140, Kyle and Sara, LPC’s, discuss how to turn a failed parenting moment into an opportunity to learn and grow. Kyle shares a recent moment when he got mad at the kids and reverted back to using shame and fear to change their behavior. We discuss the steps we took as a family to turn this situation into something that actually brought us closer as a family. We know that parents run into so many opportunities just like this because of all the stress and expectations we face during Chri...
Dec 30, 2024•28 min•Season 1Ep. 140
In Episode 139, Kyle and Sara, LPC’s, discuss all the joy and all the stress that comes with the holidays. There can be so much we want to do and accomplish with our kids and this leads to a lot of challenges. Many times our plans to have a “magical” season are seemingly derailed by children who are over-tired, over-excited, and over-stimulated. In this episode Sara and I lay out 5 clear steps that will empower and encourage you to create the holidays you and your family are wanting. Listen to t...
Dec 23, 2024•24 min•Season 1Ep. 139
In Episode 138, Kyle and Sara, LPC’s, interview interview Mike & Alicia Hernon. They are parents of 10 kids and produce the Messy Family podcast. They share how their parenting and marriage has been messy and imperfect but they have also been able to intentionally created a healthy family culture. Sara and I discuss with them how they connect with and really know each of their kids. Their openness and authenticity is refreshing and encouraging. Alicia also dives into how she helps moms journ...
Dec 16, 2024•41 min•Season 1Ep. 138
In Episode 137, Kyle and Sara, LPC’s, interview Chris King. He is a licensed professional counselor and has experience helping hundreds of parents and kids work through grief. Chris has such a powerful story of having to face grief in his own personal life when he ended up losing both of his parents. He shares a unique but easy way to understand what it feels like to be lost in grief and the steps parents can take to help themselves and their children in the midst of the grief. This episode cove...
Dec 09, 2024•41 min•Season 1Ep. 137
In Episode 136, Kyle and Sara, LPC’s, interview Dr. Larry Cohen the author of the books Playful Parenting and Opposite of Worry. He is the creator of the Playful Parenting approach. We discuss how challenging play actually can be for parents. He shares his own love/hate relationship with play. Why is play so important and how can it help parents more deeply connect and understand their children? What are some of the ways parents misunderstand play? Play can be such a powerful tool for dads to us...
Dec 02, 2024•39 min•Season 1Ep. 136
In Episode 135, Kyle and Sara, LPC’s, discuss what to do when your kids refuse to do what you are asking because they want to do something else. We walk through the steps you can take to shift these moments into great opportunities. Too often these situations turn into power struggles where parents feel they need to dominate or they throw their hands in the air. All of this ties perfectly into the holiday season and how many parents feel anxious, stressed and frustrated with all of the expectati...
Nov 25, 2024•32 min•Season 1Ep. 135
In Episode 134, Kyle and Sara, LPC’s, interview Stephanie Pinto. She is an author, international speaker, and emotional intelligence specialist. We talk with her about what emotional intelligence is and how it exponentially helps kids grow up into more successful adults. Stephanie teaches us the five steps all parents can take to grow their own EI and teach it to their kids. Stephanie makes EI so easy to understand and is such a fun person to interview. Get our video courses at https://art-of-ra...
Nov 18, 2024•57 min•Season 1Ep. 134
In Episode 133, Kyle and Sara, LPC’s, interview Jordan Langdon. She is a licensed clinical social worker, CEO of the non-profit “Families of Character "and also the creator of the podcast “Families of Character”. Jordan is a wife and a mother of 3 kids. In this conversation, she tells the story when her little daughter shared with her some surprising news that changed everything. Jordan began to realize the impact her stress and intensity was having on her family and marriage. This was a mo...
Nov 11, 2024•47 min•Season 1Ep. 133
In Episode 132, Kyle and Sara, LPC’s, interview Andy Hickman, founder of hel.co , pronounced heal. After suffering a neurotic breakdown from the stress and overwhelm of life, Andy went on a journey to understand how to be more organized, productive and creative. This is not a conversation of how to create a better organization system that parents will forget about in a few months. This about the core four elements and steps parents can take to reorganize their decision making, which will help th...
Nov 04, 2024•1 hr 7 min•Season 1Ep. 132
In Episode 131, Kyle and Sara, LPC’s, have an in depth discussion about time outs. Lots of parents come to us no longer wanting to spank and they feel like time outs are the only other option available. In this episode we explore the history of time outs and why we thought we were going to use them when we had kids. As a child therapist, Sara was even trained how to teach parents the best ways to do time outs. However, there are many unintended consequences that occur in families when they utili...
Oct 28, 2024•42 min•Season 1Ep. 131
In Episode 130, Kyle and Sara, LPC’s, interview Dr. Laura Markham, the author of the books Peaceful Parent, Happy Kids and Peaceful Parent, and Happy Siblings. She is a trailblazer in the field of parenting. We talk with her about her journey actually creating and implementing the peaceful parenting approach with her own kids. She also gives parents great tips on how to help their children when they are struggling with their big feelings. Dr. Markham has been a huge mentor and teacher in our liv...
Oct 21, 2024•45 min•Season 1Ep. 130
