Lauren Crossman - Educational Psychologist

17/07/2024

Ever had a question regarding the difference between a full psycho-educational assessment versus a career/ subject choice assessment? I've created a brief summary below! :)

04/06/2024

You make a huge difference! 🥰

22/01/2024

13/07/2023

Parents, if you want to up-skill yourself in parenting and discipline, this course is highly recommended! :)

14/06/2023

This bubble breathing technique is a great way to teach young children breath control! I use it constantly with my young ones and they love it!

It's also a simple and easy way for parents to practice with their kids at home :)

14/02/2023

Highly recommend this talk by Emma Sadler. She's phenomenal and so knowledgeable!

Showeee it’s been an awesome start to the year speaking ALL over the country. Cannot believe how busy we are! 🍀 We’ve been inundated with requests for a recorded PARENT talk so I’m squeezing one in! I’ll record live on Monday at 5.30 and the recording will be available for the next two weeks. New cases, new apps, new issues, new laws - I’ll cover it all! Tickets and details here https://qkt.io/KoT1BT

11/01/2023

Absolutely LOVE the Conscious Discipline approach to parenting. Highly recommend it!

11/01/2023

Welcome back to the new year! Looking forward to working with current clients, and looking forward to meeting new clients in 2023!

14/11/2022

Psychoeducational assessments are so important! They provide vital information about your child and adolescent, and guide the way on what support and intervention can be put in place.

If you, or someone you know is looking for help, don't hesitate to reach out!

15/08/2022

I saw this picture on a Disney post earlier and really felt it relayed such an important message.

I often observe parents who appear uncomfortable and unsure of how to deal with their children's "negative" emotions. They are often also surprised when I tell them there's no such thing as good and bad emotions because all emotions are okay and normal (I refer to them as comfortable and uncomfortable emotions instead because of how they make us feel).

When a child is feeling angry and frustrated, parents often find themselves wanting to punish them because then their behaviour is a reflection of this too. Emotion regulation however is never about getting rid of the uncomfortable emotions we feel, but rather about learning to manage it in a way that won't be harmful to ourselves or to those around us. And therefore, we learn to deal with the uncomfortable emotions and make space to allow ourselves to feel them, rather than encourage children to try hide or mask them.

Children need to know that it is okay to feel, and to feel emotions hard sometimes. We never punish children for how they feel, but rather guide them on how to feel emotions without judgement on themselves. When they can do this, their behavioral response also changes for the positive because they feel more understood and have more awareness of their triggers and needs.

10/08/2022

From - One of the main principles of Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) is to embrace the “Ands” of life: to accept simultaneous truths, even if they seem contradictory. Giving ourselves space to feel multiple emotions at once can allow us to release the pressure of trying to label and “fix” our moods. Instead, we can learn to accept exactly what we are feeling and embrace the multiple realities of every situation.

Drop a ❤️ If you can relate, or let us know what feelings are coexisting for you today?

05/08/2022

Are you a dancer who needs help improving your dance performance? Do you sometimes struggle with performance anxiety and aren't sure how to manage it? Join me on the 20th August at five6seven8 Dance Studio to help learn more about anxiety and coping tools that you can use to help be your best on stage. Ages from 7 years and up :)

20/07/2022

Today I did a mindfulness activity with a group of Grade R's. I first explained how sometimes we can feel like the Hulk. We get so angry and just want to smash things around us. It's okay to feel angry at times, but it's also good to be able to help ourselves feel calm.

We visualised we were at the beach, and used our 5 senses to experience this. We felt the sand between our toes, the sun on our skin, we heard the seagulls cry, smelt the sunblock on our hands and tasted the nice cold ice cream we ate.

After this, I showed them how we can use belly breathing with a paper boat as a way of calming down when we feel angry. We lay down on our backs with our hand on our belly and imagined that with each breath in and out, a paper boat was floating up and down the waves. With each breath we felt more calm, more relaxed and peaceful.

Emotion regulation doesn't come easy to every child, and so having the opportunity to teach children child friendly techniques of regulating ourselves not only provides them the necessary tools, but also encourages them to be more self aware. They deserve to be given the chance to know they can be in control of themselves.

🐚🌞🦀

18/05/2022

Another phenomenal psychologist joining the community! Take a look at Genna's page if you're in the Craighall, Bordeaux and surrounding areas :)

Counselling, play therapy, learning support and assessment services offered.

26/04/2022

So many new cases, so many new laws, so many new apps, so many new issues! 😱

It’s time to do a few public webinars. The first one is for parents and teens (over 12) at 17.30 on 10 May. If you can’t join live (loadshedding ugh) a recording will be accessible for a limited time afterwards.

Tickets here: https://www.quicket.co.za/events/174472-selfies-sexts-and-smartphones-parenting-the-screenager/ #/

Details of corporate/general talk to follow soon.

04/04/2022

My website is finally up and running! Check it out to find out a bit more information about myself and the services I offer.

www.laurenedupsych.co.za

I enjoy working holistically with clients and their families in order to ensure the best possible outcome. The approaches I prefer to use are Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT), Mindfulness-based Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (MBCT), Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) and Positive Psychology. Howeve...