Growing up as a high-achieving Asian, much of my confidence came from the accolades, and the praise my parents, teachers, and peers gave me for coming in first in the class, competition, etc. Before I realized it, my identity and self-esteem were tied to my accomplishments. My very well-intentioned mom pushed me to not only…
Happy Valentines! In this season of love, don’t forget the many different types of love that fill your life–starting with your very first relationship in this world that sets you on a path for the rest of your relationships, romantic or not. Our first relationship–with our parents–inevitably shapes all other relationships that follow. Parents give…
Quest [ kwest ] noun 1. a search or pursuit made in order to find or obtain something: a quest for uranium mines; a quest for knowledge. 2.Medieval Romance, an adventurous expedition undertaken by a knight or knights to secure or achieve something: the quest of the Holy Grail. verb to search; seek; pursue. (often…
Do you like being forced to do things you hate? Being left out of the fun you enjoy? What about not having enough money to ever take your dream vacations? Have you ever envied other people who seem to have perfect lives? You probably won’t end up anywhere nice if you don’t know where you’re…
Studies have shown that learning differences are as common among Asians as they are among other countries. Between 5% and 9% of the general population is impacted while approximately 6.3% of Chinese children live with ADHD, nearly 1% live with autism, and 11.32% of Indians, 26.2% of Indonesian, 2.49% of Pakistani, and 7.7% of Japanese children live with ADHD.…
“Put the dishes away when you’re done.” “Don’t take your sister’s toys without asking her first.” How often do you feel like a broken record? Between after-school activities, homework, video games, soccer practice, and just keeping up with life, getting your kids to do what they’re supposed to do sometimes feels herculean and impossible.…
Read more about How to get your kids to……<br>Motivate Your Kids to Get Things Done
Part 1 My name is Caitlin, and I’m the program director at curaJOY. I was also diagnosed with ADHD and a mood disorder at age 31, after 15 years of misdiagnosis and a lifetime of feeling somehow “behind glass” in social situations. This post will be part of a series on under- and late-diagnosis in…
Last week, I wrote about our volunteer-based product experience team working furiously on our MVP. Some of them are putting in as much as 20 hours a week! We are grateful for any donation of time, expertise, money and products. When I founded curaJOY and started ideating a digital program, friends questioned why I’d give…
Read more about Be the Change You Want to See–Through Volunteering
I took my daughters along the Southern California coastline over the weekend and had the good fortune of observing newborn seals and two mother seals in labor up close. In one beach alcove, around 50 seals swam, lounged about, and nursed their young comfortably in the safety of numbers and natural environmental barriers. Every year,…
Read more about Feel. Think. Reflect. Don’t “Seal” Your Fate
These are the most common excuses people use when they procrastinate—delay doing what they need to do. How many of these have you personally used? According to the American Psychological Association, almost 80% of the people surveyed admit to lying to themselves about the reasons they put off doing things. So, who doesn’t procrastinate? The…
My autistic daughter has mentioned a Netflix show called “The Extraordinary Attorney Woo” a few times this year, and we finally got to watching the show today. I didn’t want to like it at first because it seemed to fall into the stereotypical savant portrayal of autistic individuals in the media. Hollywood’s infatuation with the…
Growing up requires us to learn how to tolerate disappointments in life, but many parents feel responsible for shielding their children from experiences they consider too upsetting. You may feel guilt, embarrassment, pain or discomfort, shame, or other negative emotions if you know that you are the reason your child is now whining, crying, yelling,…
Read more about How to say “no”, stick to it, and avoid power struggles