My therapist taught me this game-changer term


Have you heard of meta-emotions?

It means the feeling you have about having a feeling.


My daughter just turned one last week, and I found myself surprisingly heavy that morning.

Not just sentimental, but genuinely low. SAD.

And I’m so grateful my therapist had prepped me the day before:

“Be gentle with yourself tomorrow — big feelings might come up.”

She’s been with me for years, including through our NICU days last summer, and she knows I haven’t fully processed it all.


One of the most helpful tools she’s given me is this idea of meta-emotions — how we feel about how we feel.

Like feeling sad when I wanted to feel happy… and then feeling bad about that.

Sound familiar?

So when I started to hear that inner voice say, “You should be grateful! She’s happy! She’s healthy! Nothing’s wrong! You should be happy!”

…I was able to counter and say,

“No. You feel sad. That makes sense. Let’s not pile shame on top of it.”


I share this because if you’ve ever found yourself aching to enjoy these fleeting years while also feeling maxed out, stressed, or emotionally off…

…Nothing’s wrong with you.

You’re not bad for feeling sad.

(I cannot hear this enough 😮‍💨)

This is why I created Activate Play Mode — not to pretend things aren’t hard, but to balance the hard with more joy…

because we know this season is flying by and we long to enjoy it more, but that is easier said than done!

And that’s just real.


If you haven’t checked it out yet, I just updated the APM site to make everything a little clearer, so it’s a great time to give it a look!

There is one more week left to register for the group pods.

👉 ACTIVATE PLAY MODE

I’m always here to answer any questions or help you decide if this would be right for you!

Cheering you on always,

Mia


P.S. I'll be sending out more reminders over the next week about Activate Play Mode -- if you want to keep getting my regular emails but opt out of the extra reminders, just tap here!

Playful Heart Parenting

I'm a mom, stepmom, and theatre educator who helps parents connect with their children by accessing their silly side! No messy arts and crafts, complicated activities, or sensory bins here -- just easy, simple, silly moments to share as a family. Short weekly emails include free resources, exclusive discounts, inspiration, playful tips, and easy game ideas.

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