Parents on the Verge of a Parenting Breakdown

A parenting course in Udine: a space to pause and find your balance again

The imperfect parent’s handbook

How valuable is it to reflect on the attitudes that protect our children’s physical and mental health? And yet, how hard can it be to find room for conversation, where a couple can talk things through and build a shared approach to parenting?

Talking about growing up means tackling sensitive topics: rules, limits, autonomy, anger, exhaustion, and expectations. It also means asking questions about your relationship as a couple after a baby and about the changes a birth brings to the relationship.

Being a parent doesn’t mean always having the right answer. It also means making mistakes, rethinking your choices, and recognizing your parenting autopilot.

There is no handbook for the perfect parent. But together we can build a small Imperfect Parent’s Handbook: a space for listening and parenting support where you can better understand your own reactions and make more conscious choices.

Parents and children: growing in harmony

Three different notes, one relationship to build

These two sessions were created to bring mothers, fathers, and children closer together, offering a chance for discussion, reflection, and support for parents.

Mother, father, and child can be pictured as three different notes: each has its own tone, its own rhythm, and its own needs. The goal is not to erase the differences, but to learn to listen to them and find the chords that work.

The course offers ideas for understanding family dynamics and facing conflict without feeling alone, inadequate, or judged. We’ll look for a balance that isn’t perfection, but the ability to stay in the relationship even when things get hard.

The art of family balance: what we’ll cover

• Rules and autonomy: How can we set clear boundaries without getting in the way of a child’s need to explore and become independent? We’ll reflect on the difference between rules, control, and responsibility.
• Handling children’s “no”: A “no” can express self-assertion, struggle, or an intense emotion. We’ll look for respectful ways to welcome opposition without giving up the adult’s role as a guide.
• Judgment and tolerance in the family: Expectations, comparisons, and labels shape the family atmosphere. We’ll talk about listening and mutual respect, so that everyone can feel seen.
• Threats, rewards, and motivation: What effects do threats, bribes, punishments, and rewards have? We’ll explore alternatives that encourage cooperation, autonomy, and responsibility.
• Anger, exhaustion, and strain: Anger belongs to children and adults alike. We can learn to recognize it and move through it without being swept away, finding new ways to respond in tense moments.
• The value of free play: Free play is essential for emotional, cognitive, motor, and social development. We’ll take a closer look at the adult’s role in protecting it without constantly turning it into an organized activity.
• Leading by “good example”: Children watch far more than they listen. We’ll reflect on the gap between what we ask of them and what we show them through our everyday behavior.
• Parenting on autopilot: Many of our reactions come from patterns we learned in our own childhood. Parenting education helps you recognize them and choose responses that better match your values.

The art of the parent–child relationship

Raising children without losing the bond

Raising a child doesn’t mean shaping them to match adult expectations, or finding a technique that can make every conflict disappear.

It means building a relationship where listening and authority, freedom and boundaries, the child’s needs and the adult’s needs can all live side by side. It also means learning to repair after a clash and find your way back to dialogue.

Family support doesn’t hand out one-size-fits-all recipes. Instead, it offers questions, tools, and new ways of looking at everyday life.

Your relationship after a baby

Finding each other again as parents and as a couple

The birth of a child changes schedules, priorities, and responsibilities. Even when a baby is deeply wanted, this change can make it harder to find moments to listen to each other and talk.

Differences in parenting can become a source of tension: one parent may feel too strict, the other too permissive; one may want clearer rules, while the other is afraid of holding the child back.

Talking about your relationship after a baby means creating a space where mother and father can talk things through without trying to decide who’s right. Family support can help you build a shared parenting language and find your way back to working together.

A Mairuna course in Udine

Two sessions for real parents, not perfect ones

Parents on the Verge of a Parenting Breakdown is a Mairuna course in Udine for anyone who wants to better understand their own parenting style and build more mindful family relationships.

The course is made up of two sessions and is meant for mothers, fathers, and couples who want to improve communication at home, talk through their choices, and find a new balance in their relationship with their children.

You don’t need to be going through a particularly hard time. Support for parents can also be valuable to prevent misunderstandings and to face the normal challenges of growing up with greater awareness.

Your facilitator

Elena Petris

Elena Petris holds degrees in Primary Education and in Psychological Sciences and Techniques. She is a perinatal educator and a yoga and Pilates teacher, specialized in breastfeeding support.

For nine years she was the psycho-educational and teaching coordinator of projects devoted to child development and to supporting homeschooling in Udine. Since 2016 she has led prenatal classes, parenting education sessions, individual consultations, and family support programs.

Information and registration

Group size, confirmation, and contact info

The course is limited to a maximum of 16 people and will be confirmed once at least 4 people have signed up.

For information and registration:

Elena Petris
Phone: +39 345 5960829
Email: [email protected]