
Ellen Broen discusses how AI helped her navigate the emotional challenges of toddler parenting and the deeper issues behind power struggles.
What if your toddler’s defiance isn’t the real problem… but the place inside you that suddenly feels powerless, unheard, and desperate to win? My AI Chatbot helped me explore the emotional and nervous system activation that can happen during toddler power struggles, especially when a child looks you in the eye and openly defies you. What begins as a parenting question becomes a deeper coaching conversation about childhood wounds, control, validation, secure attachment, and how to stay connected to your child without abandoning yourself. Through this conversation, we unpack why toddler resistance can feel so intense for a parent who is committed to conscious, connected parenting. On the surface, it may look like a child refusing to listen. But underneath, it can activate an old story: “Someone is asserting power over me. I am not being heard. I have to fight to matter.” When that younger part of us comes online, the urge to “win” may actually be an old urge to finally feel understood. The episode explores the difference between performing the “right” parenting language and choosing the next truest sentence available. Sometimes validation may come before we fully feel calm, but…
Host: Ellen Broen
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the The Contentment Creator podcast page.