Parenting is Already Multi-Layered, Still...
When You Can Have Additional Insight, Why Not Use It?
Do you parent in the way we’ve been parenting since knowledge about child development became more mainstream in the 1950’s (thank you Dr. Spock and others, and also yikes, Dr. Spock).
That involves what I consider pillars of parenting:
understanding child development and where your own child lies on various developmental scales
having empathy for your child’s feelings
teaching your child about their feelings
and I would add teaching your child about making choices about what they do with their feelings
You could go a step further and actively work on your own personal development so that you’re both a model and a guide for your child by
recognizing and working with your own feelings and what you do with them
doing shadow work, and learning to accept and embrace the parts of you that are difficult, challenging and feel ‘wrong’
having a daily practice of meditation and grounding so that you know what ‘neutral’ for you feels like and you can call on it more easily in hard situations
You can become a keen observer of your child - all your children - and sort out the most effective ways to interact with them and connect with them, because the strategies that support one child will not be the same that support another. Anyone with more than one child will tell you that!
(Anyone who has a friend with children who has been told by that friend that, “This is what I do with my child, and it always works, so it will work with yours…” If only.)
But if I told you there was a way to gain instant insight into your child, a shortcut to their motivations, emotional theme, foundational personality traits and the best way to support their unique energy level…
Would you want to know more about that?
I worked with and taught children with special needs for 16+ years, and worked with hundreds of families. I raised 2 children to adulthood. I thought I was pretty well-equipped in the roles of teacher, parent and coach, but I would have jumped at the chance to gain that kind of insight.
I think most parents would.
That insight can be gained with adding Human Design to your knowledge base. It’s often thought of as esoteric and can be incredibly complicated if you want it to be. But I’m here to tell you that a basic understanding of your child’s and your Human Design Type and Profile (personality) will give you all you need to make positive changes in behavior, how your household runs, what activities you all choose to do, and the ways in which you connect.
Once you gain the insight from knowing about the Types and Profiles, you may want to add in knowledge of a few of the Centers, but not necessarily! Make it as easy and basic as you can and you’ll reap tremendous benefits.
What is Human Design & Why Learn About it?
Human Design was ‘discovered’ by Ra Uru Hu (nee Alan Krakower) in 1987. It’s a personality system of sorts based on: Astrology, the I’ Ching, the Chakra system, the Kabbalah, and quantum mechanics.
By knowing your birthdate, time of birth, and birthplace you’ll be able to generate a Human Design chart (called a Bodygraph). The Bodygraph is detailed and offers hundreds of details about your personality, motivations, strategies for making decisions, challenges and strengths (among other things).
You do not have to know about ALL the aspects of your Bodygraph. Human Design can be complicated and you could easily spend decades learning about all the Channels, Gates, Planets, and more.
BUT For the purposes of understanding yourself and your child, I recommend you focus on Type and Profile. That’s it. Once you’re familiar with those, and if you’d like, you could add in the 9 Centers, with an emphasis on only a couple of them. Really, that’s all you need to benefit from the wisdom of Human Design.
When you’re struggling with your child’s behavior or your own exhaustion from dealing with all your responsibilities and your limited energy, the last thing you may want to hear about is yet another whole system you must learn about. But make it easy and you’ll gain a shortcut to insight into your child’s energy level, underlying motivations, how to help them make decisions that are right for them, and how to manage your own energy to meet their needs while you take care of your own.
Just learning the basics of your Human Designs will give you another way to understand your child and yourself. And I’ve found that with deeper understanding comes greater compassion for you both.
You don’t have to learn about all 5 Human Design Types. (Yes, there are 5: Manifestors, Generators, Manifesting Generators, Projectors and Reflectors). Just read or watch the basics on your Type and your kid’s.
How to find out which Types you are? Go to any of the free Human Design Chart sites out there. I recommend Genetic Matrix or Jovian Archive . Both are good, though you may have to create a free account. You can print out the Bodygraphs you generate to reference later.
Then learn the basics of your Types. There are any number of videos on YouTube or articles on the internet that will give you an overview of Human Design Types. I have a very brief summary of the Human Design Types on my website HERE that will get you started, too.
Understanding the Human Design Types of you and your child will add one more pillar to your parenting, and it won’t require you to invest a great deal of mental energy to learn. I find that when parents start seeing their kids through the lens of Human Design they’re better able to use all the pillars for insight:
understanding of child development
understanding of how Human Design influences energy, motivations and personality
empathy for a child’s feelings (and for your own)
teaching your child about their feelings and making choices about what to do with their feelings
working on your own personal development so you can be both a model and a guide for how to accept and manage oneself and your feelings (daily grounding practice, shadow work, and other strategies)
That’s the parenting path I’m suggesting for parents today. I’d love to hear what you think about these pillars of parenting - are they realistic, do-able?
It’s a work in progress, subject to refinement, but I’d hang my hat on all of these.