Posts by selected author

Marina Heifetz is a child psychologist (supervised practice). She conducts psycho-educational assessments and therapy for children and adolescents at the Richmond Hill Psychology Centre. Marina holds a doctoral degree in Clinical Developmental psychology from the York University. Dr. Heifetz has expertise in treating children and adolescents with various forms of autism and developmental delay. She has conducted cognitive, academic, and socio-emotional assessments, as well as intervention work in various clinical settings, including Markham Stouffville Hospital, Alvin Buckwold Multidisciplinary Clinic, and Surrey Place. She is also engaged in various research projects, with her main interests being in adolescent romantic relationships, families, and mental health. Dr. Heifetz is a frequent presenter at international and local conferences and symposia.

Pause, Breathe, Smile… Repeat

Marina Heifetz

Pause… Breathe… Smile… those are the 3 magic words I constantly try to hone in with my 5-year-old. Do they work? With reminders and on a good day, yes. Otherwise… not so much. Surprisingly, while trying to teach these to my son, I ended up using these words as my own personal motto to help stay calm and in control. As ...

ArrowContinue Reading

Attention Regulation: Mindful or Mind Full?

Marina Heifetz

Imagine the following… You've just arrived at your destination without the conscious realization that you were driving for the past 30 minutes; you were on autopilot. Or… you finished half bag of popcorn at the movie theatre without consciously realizing you've gobbled so much popcorn that now your stomach is on edge. Or yet another… you catch yourself day-dreaming and realize ...

ArrowContinue Reading

Popular Articles

How to Raise Children with Independent Views and a Critical Mind

Over the last two decades, ideological polarization has become a prominent threat to democracy, education, and society as a whole. ...

ArrowContinue Reading

Understanding The Challenges Faced By Immigrant Children

As a psychologist living and working in Toronto, where 51% of residents were born outside Canada, I deal with immigration related ...

ArrowContinue Reading

Effective Discipline Methods for Proactive Parenting

So here you are. Your child has done something wrong or hasn’t done something they should have done. In ...

ArrowContinue Reading