"Sleep Talk" is an exciting way for parents to assist their children to deal with various age-specific issues more effectively. It is a tool of parenting to enhance the relationship between parents and a child. "Sleep Talk" is a way to give a child information without giving him/her fear. For the parent, it is an opportunity to release the negativity of the day and reinforce the love and pride the parent feels for the child.

Essentially, here is how it works:
Your child is finally asleep, after a day that has taken its toll on him as well as you. One of those days when he has driven you crazy, or a day you have not seen him all day. At home, get him fed and into bed. Now, after you have a little time for yourself, you go in to kiss him "good night"… and here is this sleeping angel. Your love for the child becomes much more dominant than what has happened during the day.

Doing "Sleep Talk" helps you dump any emotional garbage of the day. Through reaffirming your love and pride for him, you allow him to truly hear you on the deepest level and you clear the slate for the next day's activities.

Read a script that is appropriate for your child at this particular time and the results will be clear. There will be changes in his behavior and attitude. The more often a parent uses two minutes of "Sleep Talk" with his child, the more solid their base of self-confidence and trust becomes. Success builds upon success, as the bond between them becomes even stronger.

When a script is working for your child, you may get verbal feedback, which lets you know that he is getting the message. For example, one day, when he was in the sixth grade, I was driving my son, T.J. home from school. I asked him, "How was school?"

"Fine", he said. Then, he reached over and patted me on the knee saying, "You're proud of me aren't you, Mom?" Now that particular phrase happens to be one I specifically use in "Sleep Talk". His quoting it confirmed to me that he was hearing the script I had been using. Time and again my clients and students have reported similar experiences.

Obviously, T.J. felt good about my pride in him and when the time comes to make decisions about how to handle particular situations in his life, I believe he is a ware that certain choices might help sustain my pride, while others might not.

I hope this will help tip the balance for T.J. to pick more positive alternatives in life. It seems to me that this is an appropriate role for a parent - not to force a child to do anything, but to encourage him in certain directions.