By Jessica McGregor, MA, Guidance Counsellor
In this article, I will discuss parent-child co-regulation and why it is so important. But
first, I think it is important to better understand emotional regulation and dysregulation.
What is emotional regulation?
Emotional regulation is an individual’s ability to detect, evaluate and modify their
emotional responses across various circumstances and environments, enabling them to meet their goals or show up in ways that align with who/how they want to be in the
world. Emotional regulation is a conscious process involving mindful presence with our
emotional state. I want to emphasize the fact that these are not innate skills, they are
skills that individuals develop and learn through their own parental models as children (if lucky to have had emotionally regulated parents) or through individual learning and
therapy later in life. With increased skills in emotional regulation comes a greater capacity for adaptive functioning as individuals become less reactive and more responsive to their
