Healthy Parenting Handbook with Katie Kimball

I’m joined by Cynthia Thurlow, a nurse practitioner and expert in perimenopause and menopause, and this conversation truly feels like a mini masterclass in understanding your body. We talk through what is really going on with your hormones, how your gut plays a much bigger role than you might expect, and why so many of the symptoms we tend to brush off are actually connected.
In this episode, we cover:
What the gut microbiome is and why it affects nearly every system in your body
Why perimenopause can start earlier than you might expect, sometimes in your 30s
The first hormone to shift and how it impacts stress, sleep, and mood
How estrogen changes can lead to symptoms like weight gain, heavy periods, and gut issues
Why your menstrual cycle is a vital sign you should not ignore
The connection between hormones and brain fog, anxiety, and mood changes
Why perimenopause can feel chaotic and how to start understanding those changes
Resources We Mention for Hormone Changes in Perimenopause
Get Cynthia's books: The Menopause Gut (Amazon/Bookshop.org) and Intermittent Fasting Transformation (Amazon/Bookshop.org).
Perimenopause May Be the Wisest and Best Years of Your Life – How to Make That Reality with Jenn Pike
Hope for heavy periods: 5 root cause solutions that might surprise you
Stress Mastery Challenge for busy moms
Get your free life skills workshops at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/skills
Kitchen Stewardship
Raising Healthy Families 
follow Katie on Instagram or Facebook
Subscribe to the newsletter to get weekly updates
YouTube shorts channel for HPH
Find the Healthy Parenting Handbook at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/podcast
Affiliate links used here. Thanks for supporting the Healthy Parenting Handbook!

Have you ever eaten chocolate or chips when you feel stressed?
Rewarded yourself for a job well done with a little sticky celebration?
Hid from sadness with a whole box of ice cream to yourself?
The term "emotional eating" might be new to you, but I'm sure you can see how it works. This interview with Tricia Nelson, author of Heal Your Hunger, is powerful in that we unlock the hidden truth behind why many of us can't lose weight --
It's not about the food.
It's not about self-discipline.
It's about feelings.
In this chat, we focus on the adults, on how to get through our own emotional eating, and although we touch upon how this impacts our parenting, it's not about kids' health today.
Super quick note that this isn't a kid-friendly interview, nothing huge, but you might not want to have this one on with kids in the background.
Resources We Mention to End Emotional Eating
Tricia’s book: Heal Your Hunger
Is sugar addiction real?
How we’ve broken our metabolism: tips for cutting out sugar
Tips for summer snacking
Master your stress: Intro to stress mastery, make stress your BFF, stress mastery for busy moms
Avoiding emotional eating in kids
Connect with Trish on her website
Take the quiz to find out if you are an emotional eater or food addict
Follow her on Facebook
Join the Secret Sauce to Emotional Eating Facebook group (It’s free! Anyone can join!)
Trish has generously offered you listeners a complimentary 30-minute session: Emotional Eating Breakthrough Session
 
Get your free life skills workshops at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/skills
Take control of your stress with the Stress Mastery Challenge today!
Kitchen Stewardship
Raising Healthy Families 
follow Katie on Instagram or Facebook
Subscribe to the newsletter to get weekly updates
YouTube shorts channel for HPH
Find the Healthy Parenting Handbook at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/podcast
Affiliate links used here. Thanks for supporting the Healthy Parenting Handbook!

If you’ve ever looked at your child’s behavior and thought, “What is going on right now?”—you’re not alone.
In this episode, we go beyond surface-level parenting advice and get into something deeper: what your child’s behavior is actually trying to communicate. 
Wendy Snyder introduces a powerful framework that helps you “translate” your child’s actions in real time. Instead of reacting with frustration, you’ll start to see patterns, unmet needs, and opportunities to teach life skills. It’s a shift that can completely change how you experience everyday parenting moments.
Along the way, you may find yourself rethinking what it really means to be a “strict” parent, and whether the strategies you’ve been using are actually helping in the long run.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
The four hidden reasons behind most misbehavior
How to tell if your child is seeking attention, power, revenge, or support
Why punishment often makes behavior worse instead of better
What to do when your child says hurtful or dramatic things
How to stay calm when your child is upset with your rules
The difference between firm boundaries and “strict” parenting
How to stop power struggles before they escalate
Why your mindset matters just as much as your parenting strategy
If you’ve been feeling stuck in cycles of frustration or wondering why nothing seems to “work,” this conversation will give you a new lens to look through ... and a few moments that might just change how you respond the next time your child pushes back.
Did you miss part 1 of this episode? Watch or listen here.
Resources We Mention for Understanding Your Child's Behavior
Pre-order Wendy's new book at Amazon, Bookshop.org, or wherever you find your books, and then grab the preorder bonuses here.
My mini-episode about boundaries especially for teens
Scripts for calm connection with Bryanna Kappadakunnel
Listen to Wendy's episode on parenting "cactus kids"
More on power struggles, positive parenting, and forgoing traditional discipline in this episode with Amy McCready
My episode on the
Get your free life skills workshops at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/skills
Take control of your stress with the Stress Mastery Challenge today!
Kitchen Stewardship
Raising Healthy Families 
follow Katie on Instagram or Facebook
Subscribe to the newsletter to get weekly updates
YouTube shorts channel for HPH
Find the Healthy Parenting Handbook at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/podcast
Affiliate links used here. Thanks for supporting the Healthy Parenting Handbook!

There’s a moment in this conversation I can’t quite shake.
A mom drops her child’s favorite stuffed animal into the trash while her four-year-old begs her not to. If that makes your stomach tighten, you’re not alone.
Because even if you’ve never had a “trash can moment,” you’ve probably had that moment. The one where you hear yourself and think, “Wait…is this how I want to parent?”
That’s exactly where this conversation with Wendy Snyder begins. Not from perfection, but from honesty, growth, and a deep desire to do better than what we were handed.
And the surprising part? She doesn’t just share what went wrong. She shows us what to do instead in a way that feels doable and hopeful.
If you’ve ever wondered why punishment doesn’t work, why strong-willed kids push every button, or why you keep reacting in ways you swore you wouldn’t, this episode will meet you right there.
Inside, we talk about:
The story behind that “trash can moment” and why it changed everything
What’s really happening during power struggles
The discipline belief most of us inherited and why it backfires
A simple 4-step process to set limits without yelling or shame
Why connection changes everything
How to support strong-willed kids without breaking their spirit
What breaking generational cycles actually looks like
The long game of parenting and what success really means
Underneath it all is a quiet shift. Maybe parenting isn’t about controlling our kids better, but understanding them and ourselves more deeply.
If that’s the kind of change you’ve been craving, you’re in the right place.
Resources We Mention for Respectful Discipline
Pre-order Wendy’s new book at Amazon, Bookshop.org, or wherever you find your books, and then grab the preorder bonuses here.
Listen to Michele Borba’s interview about helping our kids build empathy.
Scripts for calm connection with Bryanna Kappadakunnel
Listen to Wendy’s episode on parenting “cactus kids”
My episode on the Fresh Start Family podcast about building connection through cooking
Get your free life skills workshops at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/skills
Take control of your stress with the Stress Mastery Challenge today!
Kitchen Stewardship
Raising Healthy Families 
follow Katie on Instagram or Facebook
Subscribe to the newsletter to get weekly updates
YouTube shorts channel for HPH
Find the Healthy Parenting Handbook at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/podcast
Affiliate links used here. Thanks for supporting the Healthy Parenting Handbook!

If you’ve ever thought, “Why can I not get my life together when it comes to time?”—you are absolutely not alone.
This conversation felt like such a breath of fresh air because we’re not talking about rigid schedules, perfect planners, or waking up at 5am (thank goodness). Instead, we’re digging into what actually works for real moms with real lives… you know, the kind where kids interrupt everything and plans fall apart before lunch.
I had so much fun hearing about Anna’s real-life experiences in the professional world, SO different than my life, and wait until you hear what we both have in common when it comes to being POOR at time management! I couldn’t believe her confession about getting in trouble at work for a time-related issue…
What I love most is that Anna brings so much grace and practicality to this topic. She doesn’t expect perfection; and honestly, that might be the most freeing part of all.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
Why time management isn’t really about your planner (and what actually matters instead)
A simple “mind sweep” method to instantly reduce overwhelm and clear your mental clutter
How to figure out what actually deserves your time (and what you can let go of)
Practical ways to involve your kids so you’re not doing everything yourself
What to do when your plans fall apart (because… they will)
A simple framework to handle those chaotic, stressful moments without spiraling
If you’ve been feeling scattered, behind, or just plain overwhelmed, this episode is going to meet you right where you are, and give you a few doable steps to move forward.
Resources We Mention for Time Management for Moms
Get Anna’s Blueprint to Balance here
Buy Anna’s book, Time Management Essentials: The Tools You Need to Maximize Your Attention, Energy, and Productivity on Amazon or Bookshop.org
When we talk about being an “upholder” or a “rebel,” that’s from Gretchen Rubin’s book The Four Tendencies.
Learn more from my interview with Megan Sumrell about managing your time, and check out her TOP program for a free training on getting your life toge
Get your free life skills workshops at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/skills
Take control of your stress with the Stress Mastery Challenge today!
Kitchen Stewardship
Raising Healthy Families 
follow Katie on Instagram or Facebook
Subscribe to the newsletter to get weekly updates
YouTube shorts channel for HPH
Find the Healthy Parenting Handbook at raisinghealthyfamilies.com/podcast
Affiliate links used here. Thanks for supporting the Healthy Parenting Handbook!