Parenting From the Inside Out [Paperback]

Daniel Siegel (Author), Mary Hartzell (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 22, 2004

How many parents have found themselves thinking: I can't believe I just said to my child the very thing my parents used to say to me! Am I just destined to repeat the mistakes of my parents? In Parenting from the Inside Out, child psychiatrist Daniel J. Siegel, M.D., and early childhood expert Mary Hartzell, M.Ed., explore the extent to which our childhood experiences actually do shape the way we parent. Drawing upon stunning new findings in neurobiology and attachment research, they explain how interpersonal relationships directly impact the development of the brain, and offer parents a step-by-step approach to forming a deeper understanding of their own life stories, which will help them raise compassionate and resilient children.

Born out of a series of parents' workshops that combined Siegel's cutting-edge research on how communication impacts brain development with Hartzell's thirty years of experience as a child-development specialist and parent educator, Parenting from the Inside Out guides parents through creating the necessary foundations for loving and secure relationships with their children.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Mary Hartzell has helped me immeasurably in my quest to be the best possible parent I can be (I often fail). Her research and hands-on practice both as a teacher, and as the director of First Presbyterian Nursery School in Santa Monica, have enabled her to write and create some of the most invaluable resources for parents. Her book, Parenting from the Inside Out, is a must-have for any parent...I gave a friend of mine a copy of Parenting... and she said, "This book is changing my life. I like my kids again."
-Gweneth Paltrow, Goop.com

About the Author

Daniel J. Siegel, M.D., is the author of The Developing Mind, a pioneering book on the neurobiology of attachment. He is an associate clinical professor of psychiatry at the UCLA School of Medicine.

Mary Hartzell, M.Ed., is a child-development specialist and parent educator. She is the director of the First Presbyterian Pre-school of Santa Monica, California.

Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Tarcher (April 22, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1585422959
• ISBN-13: 978-1585422951
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (47 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #955 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #1 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > How-to & Home Improvements > Home Repair
  • #33 in Books > Parenting & Relationships > Parenting

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

112 of 112 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Parenting from Inside the Parent Brain, September 29, 2006

By 

Ann Douglas "pregnancy/parenting author" (Peterborough, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Parenting From the Inside Out (Paperback)

While other authors have focused their attention on the brain of the developing child (What's Going on in There by Lise Eliot, Ph.D. and The Scientist in the Crib by Alison Gopnik, PhD, Andrew N. Meltzoff, Ph.D., and Patricia K. Kuhl, Ph.D.), in their book Parenting from the Inside Out: How a Deeper Self-Understanding Can Help you Raise Children Who Thrive, Siegel and Hartzell zero in on what's going on inside the parent's brain -- specifically how new research in the areas of neurobiology and attachment theory can help parents to understand why they parent the way they do and what they can do to use that knowledge to become better parents.

The authors stress the importance of making peace with your past so that you can avoid repeating any negative patterns of family interaction with your own kids: "In the absence of reflection, history often repeats itself and parents are vulnerable to passing on to their children unhealthy patterns from the past. Understanding our lives can free us from the otherwise predictable situation in which we recreate the damage to our children that was done to us in our own childhoods....By making sense of our lives we can deepen a capacity for self-understanding and bring coherence to our emotional experience, our views of the world, and our interactions with our children."

The book's content is excellent, but it's pretty heavy-going at times. The authors offer the reader a mix of straight narrative, introspective journaling exercises, and lessons in neurobiology. It's all fascinating stuff, but it requires a lot of focus and attention. Definitely not to be attempted with a child in the room!

54 of 56 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Parenting from the Inside Out, November 18, 2004

By 

T. Allender (Vail, CO) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Parenting from the Inside Out (Hardcover)

This parenting book is far more than a "how-to". It examines the importance of the parent child relationship from the perspective of the child's neurological and social development. It challenges parents to examine their own upbringing and to evaluate how their experiences as a child now influence their functioning as a parent. The premises exlpained in the book are supported by recent breakthroughs in brain research. As a psychotherapist who works with children and famlies, this is the book I recommend the most to my clients. At times the writing in the book is somewhat techinical in nature, but there are many stories and exercies for parents that are beneficial even if the reader doesn't understand all of the language.

34 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Buy this Book!, September 10, 2005

By 

R. Mann "Robert I. Mann MA MFT" (Burbank, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Parenting From the Inside Out (Paperback)

This book is informative, insightful, and a must read for everyone not just parents. It will help you understand what is going on in all your relationships (especially your relationships with your children). Participate with the book: do the exercises at the end of each chapter, and you will grow and mature. I am a Marriage Family Therapist and I have all my clients read the book to enhance their therapy and enable them to progress at a faster pace.