Rachel Macy Stafford is the author of “Hands Free Life,” “Hands Free Mama,” “Only Love Today,” and the new “Live Love Now,” all books sharing Rachel’s powerful message of how learning self-love is the inflection point for nearly every part of how we live our lives that brings us closer to or farther from joy. In this episode, Rachel discusses some of the most important points from “Live Love Now” and her research with children of all ages to discover how parents can heal and care for themselves to make their children feel truly loved.   Key Takeaways: Self-awareness that leads to self-love is critical to healthier parenting, and must come first. Our parenting style is a product of our inner narratives, many unexamined thoughts we’ve carried for years. The ways in which we fail to love ourselves - being hypercritical, having unrealistic expectations, despising our weaknesses - become the unhealthy components of our parenting.   Favorite Quotes: “The truth is not the end; the truth is the beginning.” “That part of us - our dreamer, our inner child - is still within reach.” “That life of selflessness came at such a cost that I was not just hurting myself, but my children.” “Awareness changes everything because then you can make a different choice.”   Support: This podcast is made possible by you — our listeners all over the world — from Brazil to Australia, the USA to Singapore. Please support the JOMO(cast) for just $3 a month. Sign up at patreon.com/jomocast.   Go Deeper: Sign Up for 7 Days of JOMO Quests, a free series of science-backed challenges to reclaim joy: experiencejomo.com/free-resources. Follow @experiencejomo on Instagram, Facebook + Twitter.    Resources: Read the Hands-Free Mama blog Get the Book discussed in this episode, “Live Love Now” Follow the Hands Free Revolution on Facebook Follow the Hands Free Revolution on Instagram Listen to the JenRiday podcast episode “Emotional Resiliency” featuring Rachel