MindMovers Psychology

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Double Bay, NSW
MindMovers Psychology

MindMovers Psychology offers group based, individual and family therapy in the heart of the Eastern S

MindMovers Psychology was founded in 2015, by Jaimie Bloch with the idea that minds move better together and support is our guiding light to reach our fullest potential. Whether you’re visiting us at the clinic or diving into our online courses from the comfort of your own home — we specialise in providing a safe space for parents, children, and families together to learn skills, tips, and mindset to feel empowered to have more love and connection when facing the many challenges in life. The team at MindMovers are dedicated to supporting families and are passionate about making psychology a fun, interactive and engaging experience. We believe psychological well-being is an important part of having a balanced, healthy and joyful life. It influences the extent to which we thrive in our relationships with our partner, children, family, friends or colleagues. We are also passionate and enthusiastic about helping youth and the benefit of using group work to meet this aim. We have created and delivered groups related to self-esteem, anxiety, depression, ADHD, autism, mindfulness, eating disorders, stress, behaviour problems, bullying, social skills, and parenting. Each group is based on the needs of our clients, and are continually updated to meet current best practices within psychological interventions, as well as ensuring the learning is fun and exciting for our clients. To find out more today, visit us at www.mindmoverspsychology.com.au

03/09/2025

The words we use with our kids matter more than we realise. 💛
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When your child is anxious, it can be so tempting to say things like “Don’t worry, it’s fine” or “Stop crying, you’re okay.” But here’s the truth: those phrases (while well-intentioned) can leave kids feeling dismissed and even more overwhelmed.
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What they need instead are words that validate, soothe, and help them feel safe in their big emotions. ✨
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That’s why I’ve put together a list of simple swaps you can start using today, phrases that help your child calm down, feel understood, and build resilience in the face of worry.
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And if you’re ready for more support, I’ve created a Parent Guide that includes:
✔️ 10 ready-to-use calming phrases
✔️ 10 gentle conversation starters
✔️ Step-by-step strategies to ease your child’s anxiety at home
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👉 Comment or DM me the word PHRASES and I’ll send you the link to grab your copy today.
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Because the right words at the right time can make all the difference. 💛

31/08/2025

Taking accountability doesn’t mean punishment. It means teaching our kids that mistakes are part of being human and that they can repair, problem-solve, and move forward without shame.

When we use shame-based language (“You’re naughty,” “Why do you always…”) kids don’t learn accountability, they learn they’re bad. Over time, this chips away at self-esteem and fuels “not good enough” thinking.

But accountability done right is empowering. It teaches kids:
- Mistakes are normal.
- Problems have solutions.
- They can always repair and move forward.

Example: A toddler spills their breakfast. Instead of yelling and shaming, we invite them to grab a towel and help clean. The lesson? “Spills happen. We fix them together.”

This separates who they are from what they did. And that’s how we raise children who can own their actions, feel safe to talk about them, and grow stronger from mistakes.

Accountability = Empowerment
Kids learn that mistakes are normal + problems have solutions. No shame. Just growth, repair & resilience.

Save this post as a reminder: Accountability doesn’t need shame. It needs guidance, repair, and connection.

29/08/2025

Every parent knows the lecture loop:
“Put your shoes on.”
“Don’t forget your lunch.”
“Did you charge your phone?”
And then… we repeat it all again tomorrow.

Here’s the truth: kids don’t learn best from our nagging. They learn from experience.

That’s where FAFO parenting comes in.
“F** Around and Find Out”* (done with care, of course).

It’s not about punishment.
It’s not about being harsh.
It’s about letting kids feel the natural, real-world outcome of their choices, while keeping them safe and supported.

1. Refuse to wear a hat? They sit in the shade instead of playing in the sun.
2. Forget their homework? They explain it to their teacher.
3. Stay up late on their phone? They feel the exhaustion the next morning.

No yelling. No power struggles. Just safe, natural consequences.
And the best part? These lessons stick because kids own the outcome.

Remember: our role is to hold boundaries, keep them safe, and show empathy afterwards (“That was tricky, huh? What might you try next time?”).

✨ The magic is that they don’t just follow rules because we said so… they learn why the rules matter.

What’s one safe, natural consequence you’ve let your child “find out” from lately? 👇

27/08/2025

Before you tell your son to “toughen up”… read this.

As a mum to a son, I feel an immense responsibility every single day — to raise him into the kind of man who knows his worth isn’t measured in how well he hides his feelings, but in how bravely he communicates them.

I want him to know that tears aren’t weakness, they’re wisdom. That vulnerability is not the opposite of strength, but the doorway to it. That his truest power lies not just in his ability to protect, but also in his ability to connect.

I’m rewriting the narrative I grew up with about what it means to be a man. I’m watching my husband show our boy that warriors can be both fierce and tender. That they can lead with courage and compassion. That masculinity and gentleness don’t cancel each other out; they make each other whole.

And when I see how responsive, loving, and open-hearted our boy already is, I know deep in my bones that this is the right way forward.

Because raising boys with safer hearts is how we raise men who won’t be swallowed by silence. It’s how we change the story on men’s mental health. It’s how we reduce the heartbreaking su***de numbers.

This is the work. This is the calling. And it starts in our homes, with the words we say, the space we hold, and the love we model.

To every parent of boys: their freedom to feel is their strength. Let’s raise men who know it’s safe to be human.

25/08/2025

Something I remind myself often as a parent:
Boundaries don’t mean our kids will smile and say “Thanks Mum, no problem!” when we set them.

On Sunday night, my daughter was watching Frozen before her bath. The movie wasn’t finished, and I told her it was time to turn it off.

Of course she was upset. Why would I expect her to be happy about stopping something she loves?

This is where we can shift our mindset:

It’s okay for kids to be disappointed.
It’s okay for them to cry, sulk, or protest.

Our job isn’t to stop the feeling; it’s to stay calm, keep the boundary, and meet them with empathy.

So instead of snapping or rushing her through, I said:
1. “I know you’re sad the movie’s not finished. I get it. You really wanted to see the rest.”
Then I offered a hug and helped her problem-solve:
2. “When do you think would be a good time to watch the ending?”

The bath still happened. The boundary was still held.
But she also learnt:
✨ Her feelings were safe to express.
✨ She was heard, even when the answer was “not now.”
✨ Limits and love can co-exist.

Parenting isn’t about raising perfectly compliant children, it’s about teaching them that they’re allowed their feelings, while we guide them through life’s limits with kindness and connection. 💛

👉 Do you notice yourself expecting your child to “accept the boundary happily”?

23/08/2025

Children and adults lie at times. Sometimes it is because they are afraid of rupturing a relationship or bond, or they are ashamed and embarrassed by their behaviour. Other times children will lie because they have low self-esteem and want to appear bigger and better than they feel they are. Whatever the reason, lying behaviour in children can be hard to manage as a parent.

We want our children to be raised to be honest and this means when we catch our kids lying it can feel jarring and we will find ourselves being reactive. The reality is that lying is part of childhood. Lying behaviour emerges along with complex cognitive development, this happens in the preschool years. These are positive cognitive abilities that develop in children, which include the ability to understand that other people have other thoughts to them. This can occur between three, four and five years old. These skills are online by 6 years old.

While this is a positive cognitive skill development it also means that children also start to tell lies because they also understand that maybe if I lie about doing my homework, my mum might believe it, and I'd get out of doing my homework. So this is a product of this positive development that's happening in children.

If we want to reduce the likelihood of our kids lying we must let them know that they will never be in trouble if they tell the truth. Then actively follow through on this as a parent and remember to approach your child responsively rather than reactively. You can also give your child a second chance to tell the truth. Walk away for a few minutes and let them answer again. Remember putting our kids on the spot, and backing them into the corner with our reaction will only set them up to lie. We must focus on de-shaming our children and setting up a safe environment for our kids to feel ready to be honest, rather than calling your child a liar. That causes more hurt and makes your child think you don’t trust them.

21/08/2025

Lately, my husband and I realised we’d unknowingly slipped into shaming our daughter in social moments, rather than teaching her.

A normal parent trigger is when your kid doesn't respond to adults and peers. Our daughter finds social entries overwhelming and does not always respond when someone says hello, asks her a question, or tries to chat… and we’d jump in with:
“Jord, do we ignore people when they say hello? We must always be polite. You can either wave or say hello.” Then later, when we would get in the car or go home, we would go on about how “in our family we value kindness and friendliness.”

Well-intentioned? Yes.
Helpful? Yes and no. What we were doing is only half the picture. We have not been developing her 'social glasses', her understanding of social situations and therefore not giving her the right tools to learn.

Because instead of giving her tools to understand her social landscape, we were just pointing out that she was “doing it wrong”.

So we’ve shifted.

Now, when she hesitates in social situations, we slow it down and get curious together:

👀 “What did you notice about their face when they said hello to you?”
🧠 “Do you think they expected you to say something back?”
💬 “What happens when you smile vs don’t smile?”

Rather than lecturing her on being polite, we’re showing her how to read social cues, facial expressions, tone, and posture, so she can choose how she wants to respond… and notice how others respond back.

The magic?
She’s discovering, for herself, that she likes the reaction she gets when she’s warm and open, and that lesson lands far deeper than any talk about “manners” ever could.

19/08/2025

3 simple ways to begin conscious parenting today:

1. Regulate yourself first
- Before reacting to your child's emotions today, pause and check in with your own nervous system.
- Take three deep breaths.
- Your calm body becomes your child’s emotional anchor, their safe base when big feelings hit.
- If you can't calm your body, walk away to a bathroom, shut the door and stay there till you feel calm. If your child follows, remind them you are releasing your emotions safely.

2. Connect before you correct
When your child is dysregulated, lead with connection:
- Get down to their eye level
- Use a soft tone
- Acknowledge what they’re feeling. “You’re frustrated your tower fell. That makes sense.”
- Connection makes correction possible.

3. Teach what you want to see (not just what you want to stop)
- Instead of “STOP YELLING!” try: “When you’re angry, use your words like this…”
- Instead of “BE PATIENT”, try: “Waiting is hard, let’s take deep breaths/stomp our feet together while we wait.”

Little scripts like these plant the seeds of lifelong emotional skills

16/08/2025

In our house, I set boundaries knowing there will be upset.
When I say “screens off” or “time for bed,” I don’t expect my kids to jump up with smiles.

It’s normal for them to feel disappointed or frustrated when something fun ends.
They don’t have to be happy about the boundary, and I don’t need to change it to avoid the feelings.

My job is to hold the boundary and hold space for the feelings.
I can say,
“I know it’s hard to stop when you’re having fun,”
and still follow through with the limit.

This is what I call a boundary with kindness.

Boundaries are more than rules. They’re the scaffolding for a child’s emotional and social development. Here’s why they matter:

Self-Esteem: Clear boundaries make kids feel secure. They know where they stand, which builds trust in you — and themselves.

Social Skills: Limits teach when to speak up, when to pause, and how to respect others’ needs.

Decision-Making: Within safe limits, kids learn to make choices and navigate consequences.

Independence: Knowing the edges actually makes it easier for kids to explore freely and confidently.

Boundaries aren’t about controlling my kids.
They’re about teaching them that they can handle disappointment, trust that I’ll keep them safe, and know that love doesn’t disappear when we disagree.

That’s the kind of safety they’ll carry into the rest of their lives

16/08/2025

When children are upset, the words get sharper and the behaviour more intense.
In those moments, it’s hard to know what to say, and easy to take it personally.

Our instinct might be to shut it down:
⚡ “That’s unacceptable.”
⚡ “Don’t speak to me like that.”
⚡ “You’re being revolting.”

But here’s the truth:
On the outside we see anger.
On the inside there’s often shame, hurt, fear, loneliness, or disconnection.

If we meet that pain with more pain, punishment, shame, or withdrawal, we widen the gap between us and our child. We make it harder for them to find their way back to safety.

The old idea that “letting them have it” teaches respect simply doesn’t hold up. Shame doesn’t build self-control; it shuts it down. None of us learned to manage our emotions by feeling more afraid or unworthy.

Discipline, at its core, is about teaching, and teaching works best through boundaries, love, and connection. We’ve all said things we regret in the heat of emotion. In those moments, what we needed was not judgment, but someone to hold steady while we found our footing again.

When we can look beneath the outburst, to the vulnerable need underneath, we can respond instead of react. We can guide our children back into connection, help them de-shame their words, and model the regulation skills they’ll use for a lifetime.

13/08/2025

If you’ve been losing your temper with your kids more than you’d like… this isn’t about being a “bad parent.”

Often, it’s a sign your nervous system is maxed out from burnout, chronic stress, or even past trauma.

And while the triggers may be real, the way you respond is yours to own. That’s the part you can change.

This post walks you through:

Simple in-the-moment tools to stop a reaction before it happens

Daily habits to grow your emotional capacity

How to repair with your child when you’ve reacted in ways you regret

Parenting dysregulated is painful for both you and your kids — but it’s never too late to shift.

You can learn to stay calmer, even when the chaos doesn’t stop.

Save this for the next hard parenting day

Share with a friend who needs the reminder

Which tool will you try first?

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Double Bay, NSW

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http://www.mindmoverspsychology.com.au/

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Our Story

MindMovers Psychology was founded in 2015, by Jaimie Bloch with the idea that minds move better together and support is our guiding light to reach our fullest potential.

Whether you’re visiting us at the clinic or diving into our online courses from the comfort of your own home — we specialise in providing a safe space for parents, children, and families together to learn skills, tips, and mindset to feel empowered to have more love and connection when facing the many challenges in life.

The team at MindMovers are dedicated to supporting families and are passionate about making psychology a fun, interactive and engaging experience. We believe psychological well-being is an important part of having a balanced, healthy and joyful life. It influences the extent to which we thrive in our relationships with our partner, children, family, friends or colleagues.

To find out more today, visit us at www.mindmoverspsychology.com.au