20 Unusual Ways Mayim Bialik Raises Her Kids (That Has Everyone Talking)
When we watch television or films, we tend to forget that the stars have a life outside of acting; some are married, and some are parents.
Though The Big Bang Theory will soon be leaving us, Mayim Bialik will continue her role as a mother IRL. If you have been an avid follower of the hysterical and sarcastic nerdy show, you may have realized by now that Bialik is quite the special woman.
Though most of us know her as the reserved and the riot Amy Farrah Fowler, Bialik is also a mother of two boys, an author, and goes by Dr. Bialik, as she holds a PhD in neuroscience from UCLA, making her a neuroscientist ― see the similarities here?
Besides being extremely popular because of her role on one of the most loved show, Bialik has been a hot topic the past couple years because of her unconventional parenting tips. The author of a book on attachment parenting, called Boying Up: How to Be Brave, Bold and Brilliant, the actress and mother in Hollywood is too busy to care what people think ― and too opinionated.
With so much on her resume, Bialik's perspective on motherhood is honest and relatable, whether people like it or not, so here are the wise and unique she ways she raises her children.
20 Giving Birth At Home Is Her Only Option
Everyone has their own beliefs, and people will always be opinionated, but we love how Bialik stands her ground.
When it comes to giving birth, Bialik's method is deemed as contentious to many, yet, we are puzzled as to why her method was commonly used in the earlier days.
Bialik opts for a natural childbirth at home, more specifically, in front of her loved ones. She believes that it is a natural part of life, and her children, even if young, should be exposed to it early on. When Bialik gave birth to Frederick, she had her ex-husband and eldest son Miles by her side. Surely, many would find it completely odd that the hilarious actress would make her son that was still in a highchair cut the cord of her second child.
19 Her Bed Is A Safe Haven
People will always have something to say, and Bialik clearly does whatever she deems right and does not care.
To her, a huge part of raising her children is by sharing the same bed as them. What other way is more effective in showing affection than cuddling? Well, though Bialik has been under hot water and received backlash for doing so, she explains,
“I chose to safely co-sleep with my sons, participating in the subset of co-sleeping known as bed-sharing.
That means my sons and I shared - and still share on many nights - a sleeping surface."
18 Natural Remedies & A Spoonful Of Love Is All She Needs
If you're a fan of the comedian and intellect and follow her on Instagram, then you know how much she imposes children be raised the way she brought up her own. She has a very strong stance and is quite critical about many methods, and with one glance at her page, you'll swiftly catch on.
When children are young and have weaker immune systems, antibiotics and medications are often administered to them by doctors, but Bialik refuses to follow through. According to Bialik, neither has she ever been on antibiotics and said,
"I've learned from talking to other moms that almost everything you have right now in your home and your heart is enough to deal with most everything."
This has been a controversial topic for some time now.
17 She Is Not A Ferber Fan
When the A-lister, and one of our favorite television actresses has something to say, she is not afraid to.
She has certainly spilled a lot of beans in her books, but she does the same in interviews that concern her outlook on motherhood and parenting.
One of the issues Bialik has been quite open about and honestly admitted, is that she is not a fan of the Ferber method when it comes to raising little ones.
This method goes against motherly instincts, like tending to a baby when they're crying, and according to the multi-talented woman, mothers who do so "are pushing down a very strong hormonally primed instinct to protect and help your baby and that's kind of sad to me."
We have to admit, it is difficult to ignore a crying a baby.
16 Resist The Urge To Nag
Parents tend to nag their children, especially when the toddlers are learning and growing. Well, according to the mega-star, that is totally wrong to do. In her household, there is no such thing as nagging, unlike what many parents would think.
If you are one who thinks that badgering is imperative to a child's growth, Bialik would urge you to ditch that thought.
One of her parenting tips that she shared with Good Morning America, admits that she believes constantly being after your kid or kids about food, manners or anything they're doing wrong, will turn them into anxious children.
It is also not healthy for parents as it makes them anxious too.
15 The Way She Communicates With Her Kids
If communication is vital with just about everyone else in your life, like your boss, colleagues and significant other, it should also be with your new born or young child.
Bialik believes that communicating with a child or children is what makes parenting as simple as one can make it out to be. Now, we do not only mean verbally disciplining them, but rather, as Bialik said,
"Communicating your needs to your child and respecting his/her needs at the same time."
Children absorb all that we do like a sponge, so if you treat them with respect, they'll carry it throughout their lives.
14 Make Them Green Enthusiasts
In her inspiring book, Bialik discuses, among things, a green style of parenting; if you guessed correctly, yes, we are talking about the earth. The quote in her book that is imperative to parenting, is as follows,
“A green style of parenting seeks to create a generation of children who love and respect people and the Earth because they have been loved and respected by their parents.”
Clearly, if one respects the earth they walk on, and the air they breathe, they will treat people the same way, which is why she believes that from a young age, it is vital to convince them to respect the planet they're living on. Being kind when it comes to greenery from a young age aids children in being forever compassionate.
13 Laughter Really Is The Best Medicine
No human is perfect, and Bialik knows that; of course, she has made mistakes along the way and has slipped up. Even when it comes to attachment parenting, things do not always go as planned.
Well, when the times get rough and there is a negative aura surrounding a household, Bialik does her best to rid of it, as she does not want her children to be exposed to negativity.
What does she do? She laughs, kind of like Amy Farrah Fowler would do. What should we do? Put on an episode of The Big Bang Theory. Bialik emphasizes that is important to know when to laugh, and that during difficult times, negativity can be diffused by a joke and laughter.
12 There Is No Set Time Frame
Who invented the rules on giving birth and raising children? There is an abundance of information out there, and many new mothers do not know what to take as advice, and what to ignore. When it comes to breast-feeding children, after a certain age (age of the child), it is totally frowned upon.
Society has decided so, but Bialik refuses to go by whatever society rules is best.
She has made quite some controversial decrees, but this one did not go unnoticed by the media and people; nursing her 3-year-old son. She got caught doing so on the New York subway, and clearly, she was not bothered.
11 Let Some Things Go
The way we treat adults and certain life situations and struggles, is somehow similar to the way we should treat and raise children.
As you get older, you realize that in life, not everything is worth fighting for; you learn to pick your own battles. Well, the same applies when raising children, you must decide when to solve an issue, and when to avoid it.
Children will be children no matter what; they'll do things we do not necessarily agree with, and, like everything else in life, those things pass. Do not be too passive though, just keep that in mind.
10 Raising Boys Right
With the many physical allegations that we have seen pop up in the last couple of years that have been all the buzz in Hollywood, Bialik's parenting was surely influenced.
As a mother who is a talented actress, she is surrounded by bogus and negative news daily, but she takes that and turns it into something positive for motherhood.
She, firstly, wants to make certain that her boys will never be the kind of men that women fear. How does she implicate that in her lessons? She makes her sons understand that they must, without exception, treat people equally, and be crucially familiar with how consent works.
9 She Teaches Them To Own Up To Their Own Responsibilities
Her sons are older now, and nearing their young adult years, and Bialik is not afraid to hold their hand every step of the way.
However, she is also the type of mother who wants to make her sons understand they must be their very own people too, and she has instilled that in them since they were very young children. She encourages them to own up to their responsibilities, and said in an interview with Today, telling her sons often,
"If you are in a place where there are bad things going on, leave and report it. It is your responsibility to protect a man or a woman that you see in a dangerous situation.
Get out, get help, call the police. That's on you."
8 Disciplining Her Kids
Child discipline is needed, yes, but Bialik goes about disciplining her children in different ways; most importantly, she resists ever laying a hand on her children.
The neuroscientist is not a firm believer that being physical isn't effective in any way; in fact, she believes that many countries should ban the notion as a way of disciplining children.
She proved a valid point on Good Morning America, when she mentioned that science disagrees with disciplining children physically ― now who could argue that? At the end of the day, Bialik believes physical violence is physical violence.
7 Technology Is A No-No
It takes a firm parent to do such a thing in today's world, and we applaud Bialik for doing so.
We can tell that the mother, actress, author and neuroscientist is not a weak lady; she stands her ground solidly. Like Frank Sinatra, Bialik can proudly announce "I did it my way."
In her home, there is no such thing as unlimited access to the television, cellphone, computer or tablet ― no, Bialik totally restricts her children's usage of technology.
She does so because she wants her children to learn the good old fashioned way; by getting fresh air, reading books, or being artistic.
6 Forget About "Boys Will Be Boys"
You've all heard the following sayings one too many times, "boys will be boys." Well, Bialik wants us to dismiss that ridiculous notion immediately.
Talking about dismiss, Bialik says that in our culture, we shouldn't just dismiss unacceptable behavior or wrongdoings from boys because "boys will be boys." After all, the four-word saying does imply accepting whatever boys do because they are boys.
She has drilled that into the minds of her boys; that things need to be done differently, and that they not be excused for unappropriated behavior because of the "boys will be boys" notion.
5 Boys Need To Know About Girls
Bialik has been under hot water for a couple of things, mostly because of her controversial parenting, however, everyone raises their child or children differently, and she is just one of them.
Though a celebrity mom, that does not mean she has a glamorous lifestyle with a helping nanny taking care of her children ― she does it all herself. And after having written books, and completing a PhD, she came to the conclusion that boys need to be aware from a young age about a woman's body and the menstrual cycle.
Some parents will avoid it, or let them discover it on their own, but Bialik presented it to her sons at a very young age.
And, her sons evidently get shy about the female body, but at least they know.
4 Some Words Are Not Encouraged
Once a child starts yapping away, and once "mama" and "papa" comes out of a child's mouth, parents usually resort to the next few common words that will guide them through life; "thank you," "I'm sorry," and "please."
Those words are evidently a necessary part of any vocabulary; they represent value and respect. However, this gamut of human emotion is not encouraged by Bialik as she opposes the use of them as they are growing up. How and why?
Well, she believes that an emphasis on those words will limit their vocabulary, as there are a ton of other words to use to express oneself. Children should have the free-will to choose how they express themselves.
3 All You Need Is Love
And lastly and most importantly, Bialik wants to, most of all, encourage parents to always fill their child or children's lives with love and joy. This happens to be the number one tip she shared on parenting when she was welcomed on Good Morning America.
Promoting her books has been all part of the ride, but, though this tip seems normal, it is not as much as we thought because some parents forget to show their children love on a daily basis.
Even if your children are no longer tiny and they do not cuddle up in bed with you anymore, she insists that parents must find other ways to express affection. Children, from a young age need to feel like they are appreciated by their parents.
2 It Should Come From A Parent's Mouth First
It is a difficult task raising kids in today's world; with the Internet and technology, it has become a whole dissimilar ball game.
In the wake of the #MeToo movement, and with the release of her phenomenally informative book on attachment parenting, Bialik enforces how important is to teach children unfamiliar things before the Internet does.
According to Bialik, it is vital to talk to your kids about certain words and things in our culture that they are probably not ready to because they need to hear it from their parents, not the Internet. Bialik said that, "If you don't teach them, the Internet's going to."
1 Her Children Comes Before Money
Bialik is not one for the fancy Hollywood lifestyle; she does not have a nanny to take care of her children, and she also cleans her toilet bowls with her bare hands. You may wonder how she manages to do it in between her hectic schedule, well, that is because she is more invested in her children than her work.
To raise her children suitably, she decided the correct way was by staying home when they were growing up. Returning to work was not a priority for her, and that is the feminist side of her. On our society, she said, "We should be disturbed that society privileges making money above raising our kids."
References: abcnews.go.com, independent.co.uk, today.com, eonline.com
