The Stress Nanny with Lindsay Miller

What if lowering family stress isn’t about fixing problems but about changing perspective? We sit down with Anil Gupta, “The Love Doctor,” to unpack a simple, profound approach to raising resilient kids: pair unconditional love with developmentally appropriate challenges, then use everyday rituals to lock in confidence and connection.

We start with the turning point that reshaped Anil’s life and work, then move into the pr...

What if the toughest parts of your year quietly made you and your child braver, calmer, and more connected? We dive into a gentle, science-informed approach to reflection and reframing that helps families convert stress into usable strength without minimizing real feelings.

We start by unpacking why curiosity-based reflection regulates emotions and supports meaning making, a cornerstone of mental health. You’ll hear how mi...

What if the fastest way to calm is connection, not correction? Lindsay sits down with counselor and art therapist Jacintha “J” Field to explore how families can raise emotionally literate kids using the languages children actually speak: play, pictures, movement, and modeled honesty. J’s story journeys from a childhood of “toughen up” messages to discovering art as a safe pathway for feelings, then transforming that insight into cl...

A thousand-pound therapist can teach you more about trust than a bookshelf of parenting guides. Shane Jacob—life coach, professional horseman, and former heavy drinker—opens up about a two-decade cycle of numbing, the wreckage it caused, and the unlikely path to healing through faith and horses. We unpack how an animal’s sensitivity turns into a powerful mirror, reflecting the energy we bring into every interaction and revealing wh...

Your words are planting something. The only question is whether those seeds grow thorns of fear or roots of resilience. We sit down with author and corporate well-being coach Barry Nicolaou to unpack how subconscious “soil” works, why language like “hard” quietly programs outcomes, and how small intentional shifts can help kids and parents move toward calm, confidence, and connection.

Barry shares the soil metaphor for the...

What if a few quiet moments each day could help your child bounce back faster, sleep more easily, and feel steadier in their own skin? In this episode we share a few ways that gratitude can flip the nervous system from fight-or-flight into rest-and-digest. Drawing from research at UCLA, USC, and studies by Robert Emmons and Michael McCullough, we connect the dots between gratitude, emotional regulation, resilience, and long-term he...

What happens when a former speech therapist realizes the “perfect plan” for parenting doesn’t exist—and chooses presence over pressure? We sit down with Carrie Lingenfelter to explore how mindful attention, compassionate language, and simple spiritual practices can transform family life, especially for highly sensitive and neurodiverse kids.

Carrie shares her journey from evidence-first frameworks to heart-led parenting th...

The glow of “perfect together” can hide a much harsher truth. We sit down with narcissism specialist Dr. Anthony Mazzella to unpack how the illusion of blissful union forms, why ordinary differences feel like threats, and what actually changes when you stop outsourcing your worth. From a psychodynamic perspective, we trace the arc from early unmet needs to adult relationships that demand constant validation, then explore the real c...

One tall flower in a crowded field changes everything. Dr. Douglas Garland joins us to unpack Tall Poppy Syndrome—the ancient metaphor with very modern consequences—and gives parents a working language for envy, jealousy, pride, and the status games kids navigate every day. We dig into how cultures reward sameness or celebrate standouts, why the U.S. produces both more tall poppies and people who cut them down, and how social media...

Holiday seasons are loud, bright, sweet, and often overwhelming—and that’s exactly why they’re perfect for teaching kids (and ourselves) how to be present. We explore a simple presence practice that uses the five senses to bring a busy mind back to now, turning chaotic moments into chances for calm, clarity, and connection. From Halloween costumes and crinkly candy wrappers to warm pie dough and the glow of neighborhood lights, we ...

Ever wish your teen would text more than “k,” while your paragraphs go unread? We dive into a simple framework that makes family communication clearer and calmer: six modes—sending, talking, meaning-making, tacit knowing, signaling, and advocacy—and how to switch between them without adding more stress. Our guest, Craig Mattson, professor of communication and author of Digital Overwhelm, brings research from modern workplaces into ...

Homework shouldn’t feel like a bear attack, yet for many ADHD families, everyday tasks trigger fight, flight, or freeze. We invited ADHD coach and mindfulness facilitator Corie Wightlin to help us turn those explosive moments into opportunities for calm, connection, and growth. Corie blends neuroscience, executive function know-how, and lived experience to show how a simple “pause” can redirect the entire evening—and how a practica...

What if the fastest way to move forward isn’t a grand reinvention, but one small promise kept today? That’s the heartbeat of this conversation with possibility coach and author Victoria Rader, PhD—a practical, grace-filled path from survival to significance that starts with a better question and a tiny step.

We start with Victoria’s unlikely origin story: a joyful family trip that quietly became debt, a Google search for f...

Ever found yourself staring at the ceiling, mind racing, unable to drift off to sleep? You're not alone. This episode was born from a conversation with one of my middle school clients who shared she'd been using regular podcast episodes to help calm her mind on sleepless nights. Together, we realized what she truly needed was a dedicated guided relaxation - and that's exactly what this special episode delivers. Thank...

Ever watched your child navigate a challenging moment with unexpected grace? In this illuminating conversation with Giselle Shardlow, founder of Kids Yoga Stories, we explore how ancient yoga wisdom offers modern solutions for our children's most pressing challenges.

Giselle's journey weaves together threads of yoga practice from her childhood in rural Canada to her work as an international school teacher. What b...

Have you ever considered that your body's pain might actually be stress looking for a way out? That the mysterious aches, tension, and discomfort could be your body's increasingly desperate attempt to communicate something important?

Naturopath and reflexologist Njideka Olatunde transforms our understanding of the pain-stress connection with revolutionary simplicity: "You cannot have pain without stress, and...

Ever wondered why stress seems hardwired into our daily experience? Stanford professor and pediatric intensive care physician Dr. Greg Hammer returns to The Stress Nanny podcast to unpack this question and share his revolutionary GAIN method for stress reduction.

Dr. Hammer explains that our brains evolved with a negativity bias that once served our ancestors well but now interferes with our happiness. This tendency to rem...

Ever wonder why you keep finding yourself in the same toxic relationships despite your best efforts to choose better partners or friends? The answer might surprise you.

Revolutionary recovery expert TJ Woodward joins Lindsay Miller to reveal why addressing toxic relationships requires an inside-out approach rather than simply removing "toxic people" from your life. With profound compassion and clarity, TJ explain...

We're often told to prioritize self-care, but what if simply meeting basic needs isn't enough? What if we deserve not just sustainability, but actual joy and pleasure in our daily lives? In this soul-nourishing conversation, intuitive guide Julie Hilson shares wisdom from her book "Life of Love: A Joyful Guide to Self and Sensuality" that will transform how you approach wellbeing.

Julie introduces the p...