You’re listening to Voices of Your Village, and today we’re talking about something that doesn’t get nearly enough attention when we think about becoming parents.
We spend so much time preparing for the baby—reading the books, building the registry, thinking about birth—but not nearly as much time preparing for what it actually feels like to become a parent.
In this episode, I’m joined by Nina Spears, and we’re digging into what it really looks like to prepare for pregnancy, birth, and those early postpartum days in a way that goes beyond information and into real-life support.
We talk about why so many of us go into parenthood expecting to be in control—and what happens when we realize we’r...

You’re listening to Voices of Your Village, and today we’re talking about something I see in almost every classroom I walk into: calm corners. They’re everywhere. And on paper, they make a lot of sense. But in practice? A lot of teachers are telling me the same thing: it’s not working. In this episode, I’m joined by Sarah Habib, and we’re breaking down why. We talk about the biggest mistakes we make when setting up calm corners, why tools alone don’t change behavior, and what kids actually need in order to use those spaces in a meaningful way. We get into pre-teaching, modeling, and why this work has to go beyond the classroom and include families too. And we talk about what it looks like...

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You’re listening to Voices of Your Village, and today we’re diving into something that might just change your day-to-day parenting rhythm: independent play.

If you’ve ever heard, “But I’m boooored…” and felt that mix of annoyance, guilt and overwhelm rise in your chest, this episode is for you. I got to sit down with Lizzie Assa, founder of The Workspace for Children and author of the new book But I’m Bored!: Discover the Power of Independent Play to Raise Confident, Resilient Kids.

This is not a “just send them to the playroom” kind of conversation. Lizzie shares what independent play actually looks like at different ...

Disclaimer: This transcript was generated with the help of AI and may contain minor errors or inconsistencies. Please refer to the audio for the most accurate representation of the conversation.

Alyssa (00:00.086)

You're listening to Voices of Your Village. And honestly, if you're gonna listen to one episode of this podcast ever, I hope it's this one. This is so key to understanding self-care, to understanding self-regulation, to understanding how your child regulates and what's regulating versus dysregulating for them, for you. You get to hear the beginning of one of my workshops.

and it's really gonna break down the nervous system and how you can understand yours and the humans aroun...

Disclaimer: This transcript was generated with the help of AI and may contain minor errors or inconsistencies. Please refer to the audio for the most accurate representation of the conversation.

Alyssa: [00:00:00] You're listening to Voices of your Village, and today we're diving into a question that has so many layers. When does parenting actually begin? In this episode, I'm joined by Kate Littlefield, a therapist, mom of twins, and all around Rad Human, to explore how parenting starts long before birth. We talk about how our own histories, our inner child work, and our nervous systems all shape the way we show up in the caregiving experience. From navigating different needs in a family...

Before we dive in: The breakdown of this episode includes a brief discussion of sexual assault. Please take care while listening.

Disclaimer: This transcript was generated with the help of AI and may contain minor errors or inconsistencies. Please refer to the audio for the most accurate representation of the conversation.

[00:00:00] Alyssa: You're listening to Voices of Your Village, and today I got to hang out with Dr. Alissa Jerud. She book Emotion-Savvy Parenting. I loved getting to chat with her specifically about anxiety and what it looks like to experience anxiety without being consumed by it and had to parent a child who is experiencing anxiety.

Alissa Jerud has a PhD and is a...

00:00:00    Alyssa

You're listening to Voices of Your Village, and we heard you loud and clear after our last digital media podcast interview that you wanted more. We are diving in with Ash Brandin. They do work around screen time. You might know them as The Gamer Educator over on Instagram. And today we get to chat about how to use screen time as a tool for regulation. I am stoked to share this and also know that for a lot of us, there's a lot of messaging around screen time as a dysregulating tool and that this is something that's only dysregulating for folks. We get to look at what's happening hormonally. How do we use screen time with intention? And Ash is someone that I have had ...

00:00:00    Alyssa

You're listening to Voices of Your Village. And today we get to dive into something that really hits home for me. We get to chat with Larissa Geleris about when your nervous system is overwhelmed by your child's sensory needs. Larissa is an occupational therapist and y 'all know how much I love an OT. It was really helpful because really right when Sage was pretty young, it became clear that he and I are a sensory mismatch. That what fuels me and is recharging for me is the opposite of what fuels him and is recharging for him and then vice versa. What fuels him and is recharging for him is the opposite for me. I, for instance, am a sound sensitive human. So like tappin...

00:00:00    Alyssa

You're listening to Voices of Your Village. And today I got to hang out with Dr. Katie Davis. She wrote a book that I'm finding so helpful. It's called Technology's Child, Digital Media's Role in the Ages and Stages of Growing Up. One of the things as a parent that I truly like feel a little lost in is what this looks like when it comes to technology and social media and just like what they're consuming, because it's so different from how we were raised, right? Like we are really sailing this ship as we build it or whatever that phrase is. Zach always makes fun of me because I just don't ever know the right way to say the phrase, but whatever that is, we're building...

00:00:00    Alyssa

You're listening to Voices of Your Village, and today I got to hang out with someone I've adored for a while from afar, from her podcast, Dr. Aliza Pressman. She's a developmental psychologist with nearly two decades of experience working with families and the healthcare providers who care for them. Aliza is an assistant clinical professor in the Division of Behavioral Health Department of Pediatrics in the ICAN School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital, where she is co -founding director of the Mount Sinai Parenting Center. Aliza is also the host of the award -winning podcast, Raising Good Humans. It is such a great podcast. I love it. I've been a long -time liste...