The holiday season is not just a season for getting, but also for giving. Here are 5 ideas for families to remember the giving reason for the season.

Teens are more likely to act-out if they perceive their parents' discipline approach to be more negative than the parents view it themselves, according to a study by the University of California-Riverside published in the Journal of Youth and Adolescence. Moreover, teens tend to act-out more toward a father's discipline than a mother.

Wondering how not to raise your children with toxic shame? This week, we offer you a 5-part series -- originating in The Attached Family online magazine's "Parenting Without Shame" issue -- to help you better understand the development of toxic shame.

While women who are better off financially are less likely to be involved in a violent relationship in the first place, and to have the means to leave a violent partner if she does enter that kind of relationship, Brazilian programs aimed at improving the earning capabilities of women are backfiring in a way that disempowered men are acting-out violently in response to the shifting power dynamics in their families.

Loneliness affects our health. People with less social connections have disrupted sleep patterns, altered immune systems, greater inflammation, and higher levels of stress hormones. There is an association between loneliness and heart disease, stroke risk, and cognitive decline. But loneliness isn't necessarily the result of poor social skills or a lack of social support -- rather it is caused in part by a heightened sensitvity to social cues, perceiving ambiguous social cues negatively and reacting by withdrawing into oneself and essentially perpetuating the problem.

As attached parents, we focus so much energy on our children. After our focus on our children, we remember that word -- "balance" -- and try to make ourselves a priority, because we don't want to burn out on the family. Our marriages may be last on the list, and if so, it begins to suffer. This book can help get your marriage back on track.

Brelfies are the hottest trend to hit breastfeeding advocacy in awhile, and if you're wondering how to turn a photo of you nursing -- which everyone should have at least one of! -- into a #treeoflife brelfie, head on over to PicsArt. But first, check out these beautiful brelfies for inspiration.

Infants with a genetic risk toward developing asthma had a 27% decreased risk of developing respiratory symptoms while breastfed for at least 1 year, according to a Swiss study presented at the 2016 European Respiratory Society International Congress in London. However, once the at-risk babies weaned, it appeared that breastfeeding's protection did not continue.

Breastfeeding women rely on the support of health care professionals and breastfeeding specialists to initiate and continue breastfeeding through challenges.

Structural changes in the brains of pregnancy women are so distinct that mothers can be identified just by a look at their brain scans, according to a study conducted in Spain and published in the journal Nature Neuroscience. Pregnant mothers experience significant changes in the areas of their brains responsible for social cognition and the ability to attune with others, suggestive as required for maternal bonding. Furthermore, these changes lasted for at least 2 years; the only change in these areas was a partial return to the pre-pregnancy state in terms of memory.

Four states have enacted paid family leave laws, and an additional 20 states plus the District of Columbia have proposals on the table. It's clear that Americans are asking for paid family leave, and President Donald Trump has drafted a plan for it. But progress is expected to be slow with Republicans controlling both houses of Congress, and the FAMILY Act is unlikely to pass in 2017. However, other social issues -- from wage stagnatio to gender-based pay inequality to the ever-widening gap between low- and middle-income families -- will continue to push paid leave forward.

We need to take care to protect our infants and children from fear, particularly the fear of feeling unloved. The human brain and body cannot grow well under a veil of fear. Here's the role fear plays into the development of emotional trauma.

How important is it that we give our infants and children intentional presence? These videos on the Still Face Experiment clearly shows that infants need sensitive responsiveness, and relationship repair, from ALL caregivers.

Feeling gratitude magnifies what is good, beneficial, and enjoyable. Here are 6 games to play with your child to practice noticing the good things in life.

What is the essence of kindness? What does it mean to be a kind person? Why are some people more kind than others? Why do some people find it challenging to act in kind ways? And, what can I do to promote more kindness on a personal level, in my family and the world? When we teach kindness by modeling kindness thorough our parenting practices, we spread kindness...through how our children treats others.

We all want to get better at the things we care about. Today's reflection from API Reads is taken from a TED Talk video. This 11-minute video touches upon the topic of improvement by explaining it with the use of "learning" and "performance" zones.

I sometimes think of the teenage years as an "attachment test." As I reflect on my own 6 children when they were teenagers, I assumed that if I got the attachment part right when they were babies and toddlers, then we were set for all the years ahead. After experiencing life with a teenager who as defensively detaching, I can tell you that living with a teenager is wonderful when the attachment is deeply rooted -- but a nightmare when it is not.

Falling in love with our kids is a daring thing to do. Love opens us up, wide open, no armor, no defenses. We’re naked and vulnerable when we’re in love. Dare to feel how much you love your children. If you can’t or if it’s hard, don’t worry. It doesn’t mean you don’t love or that you’re broken or wrong. For most of us, it just means we’re scared. But there are 3 ways to make the fire of love easier to bear.

Parenting is not easily definable. Once we accept that there are no "perfect parents" and we all are in a process of learning and discovery, we will grow alongside our children's development. Here are 11 ideas to help you become a more attached parent, including:

1) Be present with your presence
3) Envision yourself as your child
8) Imagine your child writing a letter to you
9) Imagine your child becoming a parent