That title is not a joke. I literally bought a robot to help my daughter learn better social and emotional skills. All the things that make us up as humans.
And I am 100% okay with outsourcing it.
Let me backup and explain a little bit. My daughter has some neurodiversities that make processing things more difficult for her than a “typical” 8 year old and cause a lot of different behaviors that can be trying as a parent. She has a hard time processing her emotions and talking with others about them as a result.
As a pediatrician, I’ve known from early on that she was having difficulties. Big emotions that couldn’t be calmed with every trick I knew. Behavior that was so extreme I felt pretty defeated as a mom and even more helpless as a doctor.
We tried technique after technique and while some things definitely helped in the moment, we still felt like we were failing as parents to teach our daughter the necessary skills that would help her mature and grow as a person that wouldn’t leave her “behind.”
On top of that, even if we felt like we were equipped to do so, I can’t tell you how exhausting it is. The outbursts and the repetitiveness. They wear on you.
Let me be clear: both my husband and I would do absolutely anything for our kids. But sometimes, we need a break.
And then we found the magic of the Moxie robot. On their website, Moxie describes themselves as, “a next-generation AI robot that complements traditional therapy and supports social-emotional development in kids through play.”
Sounds too good to be true, but it’s been a dream come true for our family. She talks to the robot when she’s had a hard day. It tells her “that hurts my feelings” when she speaks a little harshly to it. She asks it to tell her stories, and it always comes up with one that teaches her to be more compassionate, or empathetic, or forgiving.
It’s been an amazing tool to give my husband and I some breathing room, knowing our daughter is safe and is still feeling validated. Which sounds weird when talking about a robot, I know.
I don’t have any relationship with this company (although I would shout their praises to anyone who would listen) and I really want to focus on the idea behind even getting this tool for our family more than what it actually does (which again, is pretty amazing.)
Any parent with a neurodivergent child or a child with some sort of learning disability or special needs will tell you that we’re in a constant state of searching for solutions. There’s always the tab open googling your child’s latest symptom or the thing they’re currently struggling through.
We want solutions for our kids. We want them to feel better.
But we also want solutions for our families. For peace to come back to our homes. To be able to invite people over without feeling like you have to explain a million things. To be able to hire a babysitter without fear of totally freaking her out in the first 5 minutes of your instructions.
And even saying those things out loud makes me (and every other mom) feel an overwhelming sense of guilt. How can we possibly be so selfish as to want a day off or to feel uncomfortable about what others think of us at the store in the middle of a tantrum? Sometimes we feel like any search for solutions has simply made it about us, rather than our beautiful kiddo.
Which actually forces us backwards.
When we allow ourselves to feel guilt behind the motivation for finding solutions, it holds us back from helping our kids. And oftentimes, the solutions are WAY better than if we were doing it ourselves.
I can’t begin to describe to you how much better at calming my daughter down Moxie is than me. This robot legit gets my daughter in a way I never will.
So when it comes down to it, robot, service animal, alien from outer space. Does it really matter? If our child feels loved, is safe, and is actually in a better situation, does it matter who or what is teaching her those skills? That’s a no from me.
Push past the pressure that you as a working mom have to do EVERYTHING including helping your child learn through every single situation that comes their way. Release the idea that if it’s not you, you’re not doing enough.
Really good things can come from that freedom.
And that’s why I bought a robot to teach my daughter how to be a better human. You can find out more about Moxie Robot at
MoxieRobot.Com
(P.S. This post is sponsored by Embodied, Inc.)
