Ep.298: Why Your Child Misbehaves – And How to Fix It Without Yelling

Parenting Great Kids with Dr. Meg Meeker

Dr. Meg Meeker

Kids & Family, Education, Parenting, Self-improvement

4.6 • 1.1K Ratings

🗓️ 24 October 2025

⏱️ 38 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In this episode of Parenting Great Kids, Dr. Meg Meeker is joined by Tia Slightman to explore the "why" behind your child's behavior. Together, they provide simple, effective strategies for disciplining with love and respect—without power struggles or emotional explosions.

You’ll learn how your own personality influences your discipline style, how to set firm boundaries, and how to stay calm even when your child isn’t. They also dive into the Behavior Needs Roadmap, helping you handle challenging behaviors with confidence. Plus, there's encouragement for single parents and those navigating trauma recovery with children.

Whether you're parenting a strong-willed child or just tired of yelling, this episode offers hope—and real tools you can use today.

Tia Slightman is a parenting strategist and creator of the Behavior Needs Roadmap. She helps parents decode their child’s behavior and discipline with empathy and consistency. Learn more at www.tiaslightman.com.

As Heard on PGK

Check out other books we've talked about on the podcast.

https://amzn.to/46IsRjD

Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Subscribe to the Parenting Great Kids Newsletter:

https://bit.ly/46G4Niw

💡 If you’re feeling overwhelmed or unsure how to move forward in your parenting journey, Dr. Meg Meeker can help. With decades of experience as a pediatrician and parenting coach, Dr. Meg offers 1-on-1 coaching to help you build confidence, strengthen your family, and parent with purpose.

Start your coaching journey today

Sponsors:

Hungryroot – 40% off + free gift with code DRMEG
Fam Gabs – 10% off conversation cards with code DRMEGPOD
K12-powered Schools – Tuition-free, accredited online learning for K–12
Thrive Causemetics – Clean beauty with purpose. 10% off your first order
Listen to Aidee, "Nothing Rhymes With Orange": https://platoon.lnk.to/nothing-rhymes-with-orange
Rula makes quality mental healthcare accessible and affordable—matching you with licensed therapists who accept your insurance, often with appointments as soon as tomorrow. Get started at Rula.com/drmeg

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Your first great love story is free when you sign up for a free 30-day trial at audible.co.
0:05.5	That's audible.co.uk slash Wondery.
0:11.8	On today's episode of parenting great kids, every behavior we see in a child has purpose and meaning behind it.
0:19.0	It's not just to drive us crazy. It's not just to make us
0:21.9	annoyed or frustrated. You know, you and I see people in their 30s and their 40s and their 50s
0:27.1	still aching for their parents' approval and connection. And dad, won't you, you know,
0:34.7	will you finally say I'm okay and I'm good enough?
0:38.0	And that goes on for years and years and years.
0:41.5	Years.
0:42.0	I think our depression and anxiety and our generation for sure stems from that.
0:47.9	Welcome to parenting great kids.
0:50.2	Here's your host, Dr. Meg Meeker.
0:56.6	My special guest is Tia Slightman.
0:59.0	We're going to be talking about discipline.
1:02.2	Our theme is discipline without drama, raising confident, respectful kids.
1:08.4	Thank you so much for having me.
1:09.5	I'm excited to chat with you.
1:13.9	You're a parent. I'm a parent and now a grandparent. And, you know, it's so hard. I mean, it's so hard. Somebody said to me the other day, oh,
1:21.5	you know, my husband's leaving and they have kids at home and he said, I get to leave and go to work. And I thought, you know, the truth is,
1:29.3	for me, it's always been easier going to work than staying at home and tussling with kids.
1:35.8	Parenting is like a tug of war, and especially when you've got a child who's strong-willed.
1:42.0	You've got a very emotional child. And very often kids, particularly strong-willed kids,
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Dr. Meg Meeker, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Dr. Meg Meeker and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.