Before you enquire
Questions parents ask
Credentials, scope, ages, pricing, what happens if you need a therapist instead. The questions parents actually ask, answered plainly.
Questions parents ask
Are you a therapist or a psychologist?
No. I'm a family coach. I work with parents on how the household runs - routines, meals, rules, division of labour. I don't diagnose or treat anything. If what you're describing is distress rather than disorganisation, you need a licensed clinician, and I'll say so.
Do you have a degree in child psychology?
No, and I don't claim one. What I have is a French upbringing, an American household, my own children, and years spent professionally redesigning how organisations run. I'm explicit about the limits of that on the How I Work page.
What exactly is family coaching?
Practical, forward-looking work with parents on the design of their household: what happens at what time, who does what, which rules hold, and how adult life is protected. It's closer to systems design than to counselling.
Do you work with the children directly?
No. I work with the parents. The children experience the change through a household that runs differently, not through sessions with me.
What ages is this for?
Households with children roughly eighteen months to twelve years. Below that, nearly all the useful work is on the adults' rhythm.
What if my partner won't participate?
We can still make progress, but less. A rule that one adult holds and the other doesn't isn't a rule. A frequent first piece of work is simply getting two adults to agree on three things.
Is this the French parenting from Bringing Up Bébé?
It's the same cultural territory, fourteen years on and from the inside rather than from observation. I keep the parts that transfer - the table, the frame, adult time - and I'm direct about what the book got wrong.
Do you give advice about what my child eats?
Never. I work on the structure of the meal: when, where, who cooks, what's negotiable. Anything concerning what or how much your child eats belongs to your paediatrician and a registered dietitian.
What if you think we need a therapist instead?
I'll tell you in my first reply, before you've paid anything, and I'll be specific about what kind of professional to look for.
How long before something changes?
Most families notice the evening shift within two to three weeks. The full sequence runs six to eight weeks, and the adult-time part usually takes longest because it's the part people quietly deprioritise.
Do you work with single parents?
Yes. The work is often faster - one adult, one set of rules - and the design problem is different: protecting adult time when there's no second adult to trade with.
Are sessions in English or French?
Either. Mixed households often use both.