Full Circle with Dr. Mercy

05/30/2026

Cooking together does not have to be complicated to be regulating.

The goal is not perfection.
The goal is participation.

For some children,
helping for four minutes is enough.
That still counts.

Try this:
• pre-measure ingredients into small bowls
• give one predictable job
• keep the steps simple
• let the child leave and return if needed
• repeat familiar meals or routines

Some children do not need less connection.
They need connection paced differently.

A nervous system that becomes overwhelmed easily
can still participate successfully when the environment adjusts with it.

- Because the nervous system leads, and language follows.

05/27/2026

Full Circle Child & Youth Therapy is now open.

A boutique practice for children, youth, and caregivers seeking thoughtful, relational, nervous-system-informed therapy.

Edmonton, Alberta
Virtual and in-person sessions available.

www.fullcirclecyt.ca

05/23/2026

Cooking with a child is not just about making food.

The nervous system is doing a lot while the activity unfolds.

Waiting.
Watching.
Pouring.
Stirring.
Smelling something familiar.
Learning what comes next.

These small repeated moments help the body organize through:
• rhythm
• sequencing
• predictability
• shared attention
• participation

For some children, conversation during an activity feels easier than direct face-to-face interaction.

The nervous system settles when connection happens beside someone,

not under pressure.

Sometimes regulation looks less like “sitting and talking”
and more like making tacos together on a Tuesday night.

- Because the nervous system leads, and language follows.

Send a message to learn more

05/15/2026

Sometimes regulation for your child happens in very ordinary moments.

Baking together.
Stirring soup.
Washing dishes side by side.
A familiar bedtime routine repeated night after night.

These moments may look simple,
but the nervous system is tracking:
• rhythm
• timing
• predictability
• shared attention
• participation

Not all regulation happens through formal intervention.

Sometimes it happens through the steady pacing of everyday life.

This is why small family rituals matter.

The body begins to recognize:
“I know what comes next.”
“I am not doing this alone.”

-Because the nervous system leads, and language follows.

Send a message to learn more

05/09/2026

When you read a story to a child,
you are not just reading.

You are co-regulating.

Try this:

• pause before turning the page
• ask, “What do you think will happen next?”
• notice when their body gets still or tense
• slow your voice when the story becomes intense

The goal is not to teach the story.

The goal is to walk the nervous system through it together.

- Because the nervous system leads, and language follows.

Send a message to learn more

05/02/2026

What Stories Really Do

Stories help children feel things safely.

Not because the story is real.

But because the body responds as if it is—
while knowing it isn’t.

As a story unfolds, the nervous system moves through:

• curiosity
• tension
• uncertainty
• relief

This movement matters.

Because regulation is not just about calming down.

It is about moving through states and returning safely.

Stories give children that experience—
again and again.

Because the nervous system leads, and language follows.

Send a message to learn more

04/24/2026

Two years ago, I wrote this:

“Stories delight, create calm, challenge, teach lessons, and can be used to process and heal.”

I still believe that.

But I understand it differently now.

Stories help children feel things safely.

Not because the story is real.

But because the body responds as if it is—
while knowing it isn’t.

A child listening to a story is not just learning a lesson.

They are moving through:

• curiosity
• tension
• uncertainty
• relief

All within a safe distance.

This is why stories matter.

Not because of the message.

But because of what the child’s nervous system is doing while the story unfolds.

I’m returning to this idea again—
but this time, from a different place.

Because the nervous system leads, and language follows.

Send a message to learn more

04/08/2024

Full Circle with eclipse fever!

What a day for adults and kids a like! Whether you were in the line a the total eclipse, partial, or just watched on social media, today is a great day to make up your own story about the eclipse. My pals Edgar and Eye-Thee-Matee made up our own story. Yup we went Full Circle and had some fun. "Up up, far away in the celestial sky were two best friends, Sunny Soleil and Marvel Moon... and they danced. The end."🌞🌝🌙

How will you start your story with your child(ren)? What problem needs to be solved? What feelings will your characters have? Making up stories allows your child to fall into the world of wonderland where anything and everything is possible. Its a way to be playful. You don't always have to buy a book. Make up your own stories and enjoy going around Full Circle.

04/05/2024

Reading is a wonderful thing to do with children. You can help them come full circle by encouraging them author their own stories. Take a look at some of these suggestions for writing and publishing. Let their imaginations run wild!🤓

The computer can be a great encourager to start children writing.

04/03/2024

Goldilocks and the 3 Bears- reworked!

If you saw my first post about GD and the 3 bears you may have thought that it was a bit of a dissertation! Well it was. I needed a primer so that you could chew on this series of using stories with children in different therapeutic ways. Let's look at GD in a new way. Instead of the home invasion version, let's start by seeing GD as lost. How does the story change for you now? What about your feelings? Do you have feelings of compassion for her? Do her actions throughout the story make sense? Maybe the story is about searching for safety. Let's go full circle.

Stories can be read from multiple perspectives. You can help develop compassion, perspective taking, and reflective capacity by simply asking the 'What, Where and How' questions and for older children you can ask some more of the 'Why'. For example you can prompt the child by asking "What if GD is lost? or " I wonder if her parents are looking for her?" or " Where do you think her parents are? You can even ask the child "What feelings GD might be having and how they might feel if they themselves or a friend was lost?" If you read both versions to the child, this can promote further development of perspective taking because the child experiences the same story in multiple ways. This helps them see that there are multiple ways to see a situation. It helps them think of the 'other' and to consider their thoughts and feelings.

Try it and notice what happens!