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#Parenting

A COMPREHENSIVE SERIES OF ARTICLES ON THIS TOPIC

<p>Anyone who has raised a teenage boy knows the restless energy that simmers just beneath the surface. School, however, asks for stillness.</p>

parenting

Colman Noctor: Sport and study are not opposites but partners in academic success

From 8.50am until 4pm, they are expected to sit at desks, listen, absorb, and produce work. By the time they get home, they’ve already spent six or seven hours in a sedentary mode.

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Julie Jay: Bambi Fury isn’t the only baby vampire in town

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Dr Phil Kieran: What is the best way to treat my son’s verruca?

Understanding gut health in children with tummy troubles

parenting

Understanding gut health in children with tummy troubles

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Joanna Fortune: My four-year-old doesn't want to share her toys

Tots to teens: Snow time like now to book Santa

parenting

Tots to teens: Snow time like now to book Santa

Little boy reading a book in green armchair

Joanna Fortune: My child is struggling with reading in class

Reading is nurtured and developed in school from ages five to eight years (and beyond, of course), which means your son is still very much in the 'learning to read' (and specifically learning to read with fluency) phase of his education.

Tue, 16 Sep, 2025

Families encouraged to help clean their local coastline as part of Clean Coasts Big Beach Clean

Families encouraged to help clean their local coastline as part of Clean Coasts Big Beach Clean

This weekend, volunteers and their families will remove the litter from our shorelines as part of the annual Clean Coasts Big Beach Clean

Tue, 16 Sep, 2025

Birthday cake

Julie Jay: When birthday celebrations become a week-long jubilee

We all want to mark these milestones, but even by my Kardashian standards this birthday has gone completely out of control

Tue, 16 Sep, 2025

Tots to Teens: GAA fuelling young sports players with its new healthy eating pack

Tots to Teens: GAA fuelling young sports players with its new healthy eating pack

And Culture Night for kids — events on near you this Friday, September 19

Tue, 16 Sep, 2025

Mother Doing Head Lice Inspection On Daughter

Dr Phil Kieran: How can I treat my long-haired child's head lice?

Unfortunately, there is no sure-fire way to prevent lice, but understanding how they spread can help reduce the risk somewhat

Tue, 16 Sep, 2025

Cute girl using tablet with virtual assistant hologram

Colman Noctor: Raising children in the age of artificial intelligence

With AI, we are not merely competing with entertainment, we are also competing with another type of AI — artificial intimacy

Tue, 16 Sep, 2025

Little boy swimming crawl in pool

How to help your child stick with a new hobby or skill

Most children are excited to learn a skill or hobby, but some will struggle to stay the course. It’s all part of the learning process

Sun, 14 Sep, 2025

Low angle view of pensive little girl in pajamas looking away at home

Joanna Fortune: What happened to my sweet little girl?

"So much is written and said about the critical early years of our children’s lives, and again when they reach those tricky teenage years, but very little attention is given to the middle stage of childhood, the years between eight and 12."

Tue, 09 Sep, 2025

Colman Noctor: What 'The Traitors' can teach us about honesty in the real world

Colman Noctor: What 'The Traitors' can teach us about honesty in the real world

"As entertainment, it’s gripping. As parenting material, it’s complicated. What does it mean when the same adults who insist that honesty is the best policy also cheer when their favourite contestant lies skilfully? How do we reconcile the values we want to instil in our children with the cultural messages we enjoy for leisure?"

Tue, 09 Sep, 2025

Tots to Teens: Have a field day with this model-farm toy

Tots to Teens: Have a field day with this model-farm toy

"The toy was inspired by a request from Roscommon man Padraic Cuddy’s young son, Tommy, who wanted a field for his animals to graze, and his father obliged by building a realistic toy field, complete with hedging and a wooden gate."

Tue, 09 Sep, 2025

Healthy Homemade Milk Babyccino

Julie Jay: I'd prefer to stay at home but someone has to pay for our babyccino lifestyle

Despite having a childminder sent from the childminding gods, my youngest has been kicking up such a fuss in the mornings you'd swear I was delivering him to a gulag

Tue, 09 Sep, 2025

Coming Home from School

Julie Jay: Forget their first day of school, the second day is the real test of fortitude

Whilst I was all tough talk on the first day of school, the second day was for me, the moment when I seriously considered scooping up my newly initiated junior infant and making a break for it

Tue, 02 Sep, 2025

Football concept

Joanna Fortune: My son has stopped playing football since he was called 'crap' by a friend

Since then, he has become very withdrawn and finds it hard to go outside even to play with friends, as he doesn’t feel good enough now

Tue, 02 Sep, 2025

Redhead Male on Phone

Colman Noctor: Why many young people do not recognise they have been bullied

Research shows that, while bullying remains a widespread experience for children, many choose not to tell an adult. It’s particularly likely to happen with 13-year-olds, with one in four of them staying silent

Tue, 02 Sep, 2025

Tots to Teens: Healthy lunches, Harvest Festival, and a Belfast fairytale

Tots to Teens: Healthy lunches, Harvest Festival, and a Belfast fairytale

A Belfast Fairytale by Mel Carroll is a fun-filled picture book for young children. It retells the story of the Three Billy Goats Gruff in a Belfast setting

Tue, 02 Sep, 2025

Baby eating mother's milk. Mother breastfeeding baby.

Aoife Hearne: I'm worried about giving formula milk to my baby

Research suggests that breast milk has a favourable influence on the infant's gut and microbiome, which protects against the development of allergies. The majority of research focuses on exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life

Tue, 02 Sep, 2025

Hearing a father's advice

Colman Noctor: Supporting your child during the limbo days between results and CAO offers

For parents, too, these days can be a test of patience and perspective.

Tue, 26 Aug, 2025

Little girl playing xylophone

Music therapy has huge benefits for children but it's still not officially recognised in Ireland

Despite the practice showing many benefits, Ireland has yet to recognise the treatment. It is time for that to change

Tue, 26 Aug, 2025

Heinz x Barnardo’s Campaign

Tots to Teens: Teach young kids to cook 'grate' meals

Plus: Heinz has reunited with Barnardos for the fourth year in a row to launch limited edition Heinz Meanz Mealz Beanz three-packs to raise funds for vulnerable families across Ireland

Tue, 26 Aug, 2025

adorable child playing with tennis racket and ball

Julie Jay: A tennis match is no place for a crying baby who is making a racket

The controversy surrounding a crying baby at the Cinncinati Tennis Open has once again ignited a debate around how far we should go to include parents and children at major sporting events

Tue, 26 Aug, 2025

Closeup beautiful young asian woman applying cream and lotion onto foot dry on bed, beauty asia girl moisturizer and treatment c

Dr Phil Kieran: Could stabbing pain in her heels be plantar fasciitis?

"Foot pain is a problem we often see in general practice and can be due to a wide array of causes. Plantar fasciitis is a fairly common condition, which is why people often hear about it."

Tue, 26 Aug, 2025

Young family having fun outdoors

Joanna Fortune: How do we explain to our young children that daddy is out of work?

"The best thing you can do for your children in the meantime is to take care of yourselves and each other. Focus on maintaining open communication and connection, and ensure you have a support system you can activate for yourselves: Friends, family, professional therapy, etc."

Tue, 19 Aug, 2025

Reading is Fun!

Preschool: How to help your child navigate a brave new world

"Pre-school asks a lot of children, says Teresa Heeney, CEO of Early Childhood Ireland. “It’s a very significant transition that involves adjusting to a new physical environment, different routines, new children, and new group dynamics."

Tue, 19 Aug, 2025

Teen boy wipes his nose with a napkin

Dr Phil Kieran: Should we worry about my teen's nosebleeds?

Anything that irritates the inside of the nose can cause bleeding. The most common of these is direct trauma from itching or picking (which is much more common than most people think, with a study showing that 91% of us do so).

Tue, 19 Aug, 2025

Tots to Teens: All the fun of circus at a Cork fort

Tots to Teens: All the fun of circus at a Cork fort

"All sorts of circus performers will provide the entertainment, including aerial acrobats, dancing Disco Dragons, and stilt walkers. Cork’s 96FM will be on hand to provide the music."

Tue, 19 Aug, 2025

Starting secondary school: How to cope with a steep learning curve

Starting secondary school: How to cope with a steep learning curve

On the cusp of adolescence, we leave behind the familiarity of one teacher to join ‘big school’. We ask prominent people how they coped

Sun, 17 Aug, 2025

plastic model of a human jaw with white teeth and a brown teddy bear with a wooden toothbrush

Julie Jay: Trips to the dentist can often be a kick in the teeth

"Our new dentist’s reception area is so instantly soothing, I was almost envious of the patients waiting for a root canal. The sparkling floors scream, ‘We don’t reuse toothpicks here,’ while the funny ornaments, depicting old-school dentists, complete with monocles, tell us this dentist also knew how to have fun."

Tue, 12 Aug, 2025

Tots to Teens: Cork on a Fork Festival is a recipe for a good time

Tots to Teens: Cork on a Fork Festival is a recipe for a good time

"...hands-on cooking classes will teach children how to make pizza, pasta, and sweet treats, like carrot cake balls, apple doughnuts, and smoothies..."

Tue, 12 Aug, 2025

Mother comforting her crying little girl. Parenthood, family, support concept

Joanna Fortune: A trial visit to playschool didn't go well, I'm dreading the real thing in September

My three-year-old daughter is very attached to me. She's an only child, and we do almost everything together. She got distressed when I attempted to leave her at playschool in June, so I stayed with her. What would you advise?

Tue, 12 Aug, 2025

Hearing a father's advice

Colman Noctor: Strategies for supporting teens anxious about returning to school

A 2020 study in the Journal of Adolescence found that school-year transitions significantly affect adolescents’ mood and behaviour, especially after long breaks.

Tue, 12 Aug, 2025

woman shaving her armpit with red shaver

Dr Phil Kieran: How can we stop our daughter’s painful skin infections?

Hidradenitis suppurativa is also known as acne inversa and is a recurring condition

Tue, 12 Aug, 2025

Parenting teenagers: When to choose a conflict — and when to let it go

Parenting teenagers: When to choose a conflict — and when to let it go

Everything from the clothes your children wear to the state of their bedroom can bother you but there is a time to get tough and there's a time to look the other way the experts tell Helen O'Callaghan.

Sun, 10 Aug, 2025

Playing on a Video Game

Joanna Fortune: My son lost contact with his pals when he quit the local football team

I've suggested taking up a new sport, but he says he's not interested. What would you suggest?

Tue, 05 Aug, 2025

Tots to Teens: Back-to-school and off-to-college — info and supplies

Tots to Teens: Back-to-school and off-to-college — info and supplies

And an end-of-summer picnic coming up at Fota House and Gardens

Tue, 05 Aug, 2025

Father and son recycling together in the backyard

Julie Jay: It’s hard to think of anything more harmful to the planet than being a parent

Before having kids, I was all about saving the planet, but now as a parent my eco-warrior approach has become a little more compromised

Tue, 05 Aug, 2025

'I thought there’s no way I could be menopausal — I’ve just had a baby'

'I thought there’s no way I could be menopausal — I’ve just had a baby'

Women who give birth in their late 30s and their 40s may unwittingly find themselves in two stressful life phases at once

Sun, 03 Aug, 2025

Depressed teenager on his phone in the dark.

Colman Noctor: New, strict online age verification will keep Ireland’s children safer

Ireland is among the first EU countries to implement legally-binding age verification

Tue, 29 Jul, 2025

Visit the Cork farm with five acres filled with 100,000 sunflowers

Visit the Cork farm with five acres filled with 100,000 sunflowers

Chill out by pre-making healthy and tasty freezer meals — loads of recipes and tips in this new Make & Freeze book

Tue, 29 Jul, 2025

Loving mother hugging, comforting little daughter, enjoying tender moment

Joanna Fortune: How do I reassure my clingy child that I'm going to come back every time?

She now has a meltdown nearly every time I attempt to leave her behind with her dad or babysitter

Tue, 29 Jul, 2025

Depressed young woman looks at her skin and touches it. She has disease there. Woman is worried. She almost cries.

Dr Phil Kieran: It can be hard to figure out exact cause of eczema flare-ups

One thing we commonly see at this time of year is a photo-irritation response. This can look like eczema and can be identified by appearing on an area where sunscreen, perfume or other skin products are applied and then exposed to the sun. I have seen this happen even with perfumes a patient has used extensively in the past without issue

Tue, 29 Jul, 2025

Photo of baby boy sleeping together with teddy bear.

Sleep experts' top tips on getting pre-schoolers to bed each night

Get to know your young child’s delaying tactics, and put in place habits and routines that foster a good night’s rest

Sun, 27 Jul, 2025

Portrait of sad offended teen boy having offended facial expression, isolated on gray background, wearing in casual clothes

Joanna Fortune: My son was spoiled while on holidays with a friend's well-off family

"You probably know that feeling when you come home from a brilliant holiday and everything at home feels anti-climactic and dull in comparison to the experiences you’ve had on holiday. It’s often referred to as “post-holiday blues”."

Tue, 22 Jul, 2025

Beach toys

Julie Jay: My stomach sinks at the prospect of fun in the sun

More rain, less pain I say, at least when it comes to entertaining children over these summer months

Tue, 22 Jul, 2025

Left foot with bruised big toe

Dr Phil Kieran: Is there anything we can do to save my son's injured toenail?

"If your son’s bruise is large enough, it can cause the nail to separate from the underlying nail bed. This is what causes the nail to fall off."

Tue, 22 Jul, 2025