On this week’s show, we’re talking about raising resilient kids and nurturing families during the pandemic and beyond. Through good nutrition, a regular mealtime routine, and help from today’s guest, Ekua Walker, NP, we’ll provide tools for keeping kids strong and on track during tough times.
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Ekua Walker, NP is a pediatric child development nurse and CEO (chief encouragement officer) who lives and practices in the San Francisco Bay area. Ekua works with families of young children and teens with a range of challenges, including ADHD, communication delays, and disabilities that impact learning.
She is board-certified in primary care pediatrics; she also hosts the podcast, Moms Changing the World, where moms of all kinds from all over the world find encouragement, tools, and inspiration to raise world-changers, one child at a time, one day at a time. On today’s show, we discuss the importance of established routines, helping kids stay focused, and re-establishing social skills after the pandemic, and we explain how good nutrition and routines can help with anxiety.
“We learned how much we took for granted when the pandemic brought its disruptions to our lives.”
– Euka Walker, NP
Show Highlights:
- Ekua’s life in the Bay area, where she works in a large specialty pediatrics practice, partnering with parents for the treatment and management of many problems for kids; she’s the mom to two girls, ages 7 and 10, hosts the Moms Changing the World podcast, and loves Zumba
- What’s come out of the disruption of routines due to the pandemic
- The mental health impact of the pandemic for children and young people
- How we can use coping strategies like mindfulness and awareness and making space for the feelings
- How parents can be the calming influence when a kid’s stress level is escalating
- Why children need their parents to “just be there” above all else, even in the middle of stressful situations
- Why downtime and rest are necessities for kids and adults
- One habit that helps promote attention and focus is single-tasking instead of multitasking
- What family meals look like at Ekua’s house
- Ekua’s family background as immigrants from Ghana; her culture has carried over into her cooking
- The importance of sleep for focus; manage light and screens and use natural sources of melatonin
- How cooking together with kids can be a powerful teaching tool and help develop their social skills
- Anxiety: what it is, how it’s common to people of all ages, and foods that can help
- Ekua’s podcast, in which she talks to moms who are changing the world in interesting ways
Resources:
Connect with Euka:
Website: Moms Changing the World
Podcast: Moms Changing the World Podcast
Facebook Group: Moms Changing the World FB Group
Connect with Liz Weiss
Author, Color, Cook, Eat! coloring book series
Website: Liz’s Healthy Table
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For other podcast episodes, check out:
SATISFY; Healthy Recipes That Hit the Spot with Mona Dolgov
A New Vision for Healthy Eating in 2021 with Maya Feller, MS, RD
The Power of Potatoes with Amy Myrdal Miller, MS, RDN
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