Check Out Denise Sironen’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Denise Sironen.

Hi Denise, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today.
As a licensed school psychologist, I have spent my career working with kids, families, and educators through their daily battles with “challenging behavior.” Working directly with kids, training teachers, and teaching parents allowed me to see what was missing: the ability to coach well-intended adults who understood what they needed to do but had a hard time doing it in tough moments. Only treating a child or a teen’s mental health issues without specific, ongoing work with their caretakers resulted in a lot of frustration, a lot of blaming, and not a lot of positive change.

In 2020, just before COVID, I started Child Wise, a parent coaching practice allowing me to really “dig in” with parents, and other caregivers. While my background as a school psychologist and my continuing education in the field of positive parenting provide me with expertise in many areas, I believe that parents are the experts on their children. Working together in a relaxed, confidential setting, we develop specific plans to manage stress and respond to anger, anxiety, and other parenting challenges. Individualized coaching can propel parents into a feeling of confidence, balance, and joy no matter where they are on in their parenting journey.

As a mom of three grown men, I know first-hand that parenting can be joyful and rewarding while challenging and heartbreaking, often at the same time! My work with parents is grounded in the belief that children and parents want to do their best and that any parent’s deepest desire is to raise healthy kids. Calm, confident adults create strongly connected kids. Focusing on proven parenting practices and the existing strengths of parents and families, I have been excited to see significant changes in emotional and behavioral health for kids and parents.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
For me, a bumpy road is part of any process, and I strive to find peace and well-being within the struggle. One of the specific struggles Child Wise has faced is getting information to the people who need it the most – parents! Parenting can be isolating and if there is a mental health or behavioral challenge in the mix, it can be hard for parents to find social support from community gatherings, church, mom’s groups, etc.

There are few resources for them as there might be if they were parenting a child with a physical illness or disability. Though I have worked with hundreds of parents, getting word to isolated parents about the support Child Wise parent coaching can offer is an ongoing challenge.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
Parent coaching is a specific field of work that combines a deep, working knowledge of mental health, wellness, and child development with the ability to help parents access their authentic strengths. Rather than focusing on diagnostic pathology as traditional psychotherapy does, the parent coaching process looks toward a desired outcome, a preferred future, and implements specific actions step toward that end.

We focus on expanding strengths and using tools and strategies to use in real-time, resulting in durable practices that work. The parent coaching format is more accessible to busy parents and often less expensive and shorter-term than conventional therapy. My services include coaching for couples and individual parents, group coaching, and educational workshops on a variety of topics.

I specialize in working with parents and caregivers facing the often-lonely job of raising a child/teen with a mental health condition and/or behavioral challenge. My practice also includes supporting parents around emotional regulation issues, improved communication, school systems including the IEP process and 504 services, giftedness, 2E, and neurodiversity. Very young families can also benefit from coaching by beginning their parenting journey by clarifying their values and taking steps to prevent burnout.

I am proud to offer a nonjudgmental space for diverse parents. Life and relationships happen within a social and cultural context. I am committed to creating a safe space for discussing issues related to race, oppression, LGBTQ, gender, and sexuality.

What does success mean to you?
It is the best feeling when a parent has “graduated” from coaching, confident in their knowledge that while parenting is never perfect, they have the skills and emotional wellness to handle what kids – and life – throw at them. Successful coaching ends with parents who have tools, social support, and a sense of emotional peace that allows them to be present with their kids and make healthy decisions for their families.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://childwisecoaching.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/childwisecoaching/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChildWiseCoaching/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/child-wise-coaching/

Image Credits
http://jlportraitart.com/ https://www.kbenfieldphotography.com/