Cradle Psychology

Cradle Psychology Parent and child clinical psychology support

29/07/2026

Explosive emotions can leave the whole family feeling overwhelmed, especially during times of change.

As routines shift, the summer holidays come to an end, and the return to school approaches, it’s common to see bigger feelings and more challenges with emotional regulation. The good news is that these behaviours are understandable, and there are practical, evidence-based ways to respond.

Join us, Dr Johanna Clancy and Dr Marese McDonnell, Snr Clinical Psychologists, for our Explosive Emotions Workshop on Thursday 10th September at 7pm, where we’ll cover:

✨ Why explosive emotions happen and what they’re communicating
✨ How your child’s brain and emotional regulation skills are developing
✨ Common triggers and why emotions can feel bigger during periods of transition
✨ Practical, evidence-based strategies to reduce meltdowns and support regulation
✨ What to do in the moment and how to build emotional resilience over time
✨ Real-life examples you can start using straight away

We’ll also finish with a live Q&A, giving you the opportunity to ask questions about your own child’s experiences and leave with advice tailored to your family.

Whether your child is a toddler, preschooler or primary school age, you’ll come away with a deeper understanding of their behaviour and the confidence to respond in a way that strengthens connection and supports long-term emotional development.

🎟️ Book your place for €30 via the link in our bio. We can’t wait to see you there!

15/07/2026

My daughter recently started a little Montessori summer camp. Like many children, she hadn’t spent much time away from us before, so naturally I felt a little anxious about how she would manage the transition.

She was incredibly well supported by amazing teachers, and overall it has been a really positive experience. But that doesn’t mean it was completely smooth. There was some resistance, some clinginess, and some understandable reluctance at drop-off (and pick-up!). This is incredibly common.

A certain amount of separation anxiety at preschool age is completely developmentally normal. Young children are still developing the ability to hold their caregiver “in mind” when they’re apart. They can’t yet think in the same way an older child can: “Mum is at work and she’ll be back after lunch.” When they’re separated, it can genuinely feel uncertain.

In fact, securely attached children will often show some anxiety when facing a new separation. That’s not a sign that anything has gone wrong. It’s often a reflection of a strong, secure bond.

Of course, every child is different. Some children walk into preschool without looking back, while others are slower to warm up. Neither response is better or healthier. They’re simply different temperaments responding to a new experience.

I’d become more curious if the distress is persistent and starts affecting your child’s functioning. For example, if they’re becoming increasingly distressed rather than gradually settling, if they’re upset beyond drop-off, if it’s affecting sleep or appetite, if they’re worrying constantly about preschool, or no longer enjoying things they usually love.

If that sounds like your child, it may be worth talking with the preschool about making the transition gentler. A gradual settling-in plan, shorter days, helping your child understand where you’ll be and when you’ll return, a consistent goodbye routine, a transitional object, or small connection rituals with teachers can all make a real difference.

For most children, though, a few tears at drop-off, some reluctance to go in, or wanting one more cuddle are all well within the range of typical deve

Personal disclosure is something that we as psychologists are thought to consider very cautiously within our training. A...
26/06/2026

Personal disclosure is something that we as psychologists are thought to consider very cautiously within our training. And this is for good reason - we would never want our clients to feel burdened by our life experiences, that the focus is shifted away from them, or that boundaries become blurred.

And yet for us, as we work closely with parents and families, we feel it is critical for us to bring a level of our humanity to our work. We are psychologists, but ultimately we are imperfect, messy humans too! And this shows up in our parenting just as it does for the people we work with.

So with care, consideration, and ongoing reflection and supervision, we are not afraid to bring part of ourselves to our work, and to the wonderful families we are lucky enough to support.

30/05/2026

A wonderful day yesterday delivering our Explosive Emotions workshop for a fantastic group of parents with Sr Kevin’s Family Resource Centre, followed by a well overdue catch up with some good friends from our doctoral training.
Very grateful for these opportunities and for all of the work we get to do with Cradle!

14/05/2026

Some things that can help to support perspective taking in a child with a social communication difference without encouraging masking to performing social behaviour:

1. Slow social situations down. Many autistic children process social information more slowly, especially during emotionally charged moments. Rather than expecting immediate social insight (“Why would you say that?”), it can help to revisit situations later when the nervous system is calm.

2. Be aware of possible shame. Focus on moving away from this first! Shame tends to increase anxiety and masking, not genuine understanding.

3. Try to separate impact from intent. A child may say something very direct or miss a social cue without any desire to hurt someone. Beginning with curiosity (“I wonder what was happening for you there?”) keeps connection intact.

4. Model different viewpoints naturally and without pressure: “Sometimes people can feel disappointed when they don’t get to post their way.” This reduces cognitive demand for your child.

5. Remember that perspective-taking is harder under stress! If a child is dysregulated, overwhelmed, sensory overloaded, anxious, or in fight/flight mode, access to social thinking becomes much harder. Regulation should always come before reflection.

6) Respect different communication styles. Some children may communicate care differently. Some show empathy through problem-solving, sharing information, practical help, loyalty, or checking in later once they have processed things internally.

Remember that some of this might fit for your child and other parts might not! We hope this is helpful ✨

13/05/2026

Families are complicated! We don’t have to be afraid of that, because re-shaping cycles does not mean seeking or expecting perfection from ourselves or from our family systems.

05/05/2026

Cognitive defusion is a core process in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT).

After a bank holiday weekend, changes in routine, tiredness, social demands, or less structure can make worry thoughts feel more convincing. ACT does not aim to “challenge” every thought or force positive thinking. Instead, cognitive defusion helps us notice thoughts as mental events, rather than facts that must be believed or acted on.

A few useful questions:

“Is this thought a fact, or is it a worry story my mind is producing?”

“How helpful is it to hold tightly to this thought right now?”

“Is this thought moving me towards the person, parent, or partner I want to be?”

“Can I make room for this thought without letting it run the whole day?”

The goal is not to eliminate worry, but to create enough space to respond with more flexibility.

This post is based on principles from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT).

25/04/2026

A simple tip if you are feeling overwhelmed or disconnected in your parenting! We love this one and use it all the time ourselves. Based on the Acceptance and Commitment model which considers the importance of clarifying and living in line with our core values across different domains of our life.

20/04/2026

We’ve just been having a conversation with about how becoming a parent can crack you open in ways no one fully prepares you for! Thanks Mary-Rose for inspiring this post.

We talk a lot about the baby being born, but not enough about the mother being born too. Matrescence is a huge shift physically, hormonally, emotionally, mentally. It changes how you feel, how you cope, how you see yourself and the world around you.

And the same is true for dads. Patrescence matters too. Both people in a relationship can be moving through a massive identity shift at the same time, often in very different ways.

We give teenagers so much grace during adolescence. Parents deserve that same compassion during this season too.

This is why these conversations matter so much in relationships. Not just “how is the baby sleeping?” but “what is this transition actually like for you?”

If this season feels bigger than you expected, that makes sense to us!

16/04/2026

Lucy Johnstone is a UK based psychologist who considers the crucial role of different forms of power in affecting a person’s life.

We often consider that in relation to parenting and how power operates in our parenting experiences from the earliest possible point.

Sometimes that operation of power can feel largely unnoticeable, while other times it can feel stark and perhaps imbalanced.

Reflecting on how power operates in our lives can support self-compassion and awareness.

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