Contact
Marco Bertaglia
D-82405 Wessobrunn
+49 176 61888676
+39 334 2498125
marco@marcobertaglia.eu
Marco Bertaglia
Aware Parenting
Aware Parenting is an approach established by the Swiss-American developmental psychologist Dr. Aletha J. Solter., PhD. A world-renowned expert, Aletha Solter is recognised internationally for her work on attachment, trauma, non-punitive discipline, and developmentally appropriate education.
I am a Certified Instructor of the Aware Parenting Institute, directly with Aletha from 2004 to 2012, and re-certified in August 2026 with Anke Eyrich and her Aware Parenting Institute in Germany
What is Aware Parenting?
Aware Parenting is an attachment-based and trauma-informed approach to parenting which does not use either punishments or rewards.
Four assumptions support the Aware Parenting approach:
1. Children know what they need for optimal physical, emotional, and intellectual development.
2. If children's needs are met, and if they are not hurt or stressed, they will act cooperatively, compassionately, and nonviolently.
3. Children are extremely vulnerable. Stress, trauma, or unmet needs can have long-lasting, negative effects on their behaviour.
4. Children can recover from the effects of stress and trauma, and they are born knowing how to do so.
There are three aspects in Aware Parenting:
1. Attachment-style parenting
2. Non-punitive discipline
3. Healing from stress and trauma
Attachment-style parenting relates to a style of parenting that maximally supports bonding and attachment, through natural childbirth, immediate bonding, plenty of physical contact, prolonged (one, two or more years) breastfeeding, immediate and empathic, welcoming response to crying and other emotions, sensitive attunement.
Non-punitive discipline relates to utter and complete avoidance of any kind of physical or moral punishment of any kind, without any spanking, hitting, “time-out”, artificial “consequences”, rewards, bribes, or the likes. Cooperation is based on the empathic, compassionate search for the underlying needs and feelings that are the origin of any behaviour, with anger management for parents, and nonviolent engagement with conflict. The approach to engage with conflict intends to cater for everybody needs and is dialogical. Family meetings, mediation, and similar approaches are adopted. Children are actively involved and supported, as full human beings.
Healing from stress and trauma is based on (a) the recognition that unmet needs, stress, and trauma are the primary causes of any challenging behaviour and emotional issues and (b) the recognition of the healing effects of crying, tantrums, play, laughter, all in the context of a loving relationship between parents (and other adults) and children. Trauma-awareness imply that Aware Parenting also places emphasis on the prevention of stress and trauma. At the same time, it acknowledges that stress and trauma do occur, and accept, respect, and listen empathically to all and any of children's emotions.
There are ten key principles of Aware Parenting. You can read them directly on the main Aware Parenting website, in several languages, including English, Italian, Spanish, French, German. Or you can read them on this website at this page, with more detailed explanations for each principle.
I wish to whole-heartedly invite you to read all of Dr. Aletha Solter's books, and suggest you may wish to begin with “The Aware Baby”, that I consider as a full overview of all that is key to Aware Parenting.
My own work with Aware Parenting
I am offering coaching calls, empathic listening for parents and educators, short interactive conferences and longer workshops on all of the different aspects of Aware Parenting, the four underlying assumptions, the three pillars, and the ten principles.
My offerings are oriented to practice. They are grounded in theory yet invested in your own daily experiences and challenges.
You can book a call with me to explore what might be useful for you.
You can join one of my events, or get in touch to co-organise one.
You can find conferences and workshops that I am offering, both online and in-person, on my main event page (with all I am offering, including Nonviolent Communication and other stuff).
Or you can see below on this same page, where only Aware Parenting events are listed.
I am looking forward to meeting you!
My personal story with Aware Parenting
My first son was born in early 2003 and it was unexpectedly necessary for him to undergo surgery on the very first day of his life. He then spent 18 days in hospital, the first 11 in intensive care.
Although I knew empathy from Nonviolent Communication, I was a totally unaware dad.
What does “unaware dad” mean?
When we become parents, I am firmly convinced from my own experience and from the knowledge I subsequently acquired, that we have one of two paths, two possibilities, available to us.
We other consider very deeply our own past story, learn about parenting, look deeply into us with full awareness, and take conscious action to choose how we intend to be parents, or we don't. If we do not, then we unconsciously reproduce the approaches and behaviours and parenting styles we have ourselves, as most of us around us, been exposed to, without realising.
Although I had already began to revisit and transform most of my outlook on things with my then first three years of deep inner healing and transformation with Nonviolent Communication, Iacked something that only Aware Parenting then offered to me. So I began doing things to sooth my baby. The first days in intensive care, as he was in his tiny bed and I could be at his side, and he cried, I would give him my little finger to suckle, and “be happy” - as I then thought, and would not recommend.
After weeks of “soothing” my son, he could not sleep quietly anymore and had accumulated immense tension. We were lucky than most parents. The medical doctor who assisted us with our son knew about Aware Parenting. A rare gift from heaven, she came to our place and helped me accompany my son. She explained he needed crying and being empathically listened to, while being held in my arms, without any attempt to calm him down until he would calm by himself.
So I did it.
The first time he could finally be listened and be allowed to cry all he needed, he screamed for an entire hour. After that, he fell asleep and slept continuously and peacefully for three and a half hours, treble the time he'd ever slept in the few weeks preceding, and woke up thoroughly joyful, relaxed, smiling with gratefulness and curiosity.
I was flabbergasted!
I immediately wanted to know all about Aware Parenting, read all the books Aletha had then already written (if I reme-mber correctly, the first three books). Booked a phone consultation with Aletha. Invited her about 8 or 10 months later to Belgium where I organised a successful series of events (a conference on “why babys cry”, a day workshop on discipline without punishment or rewards, and a deepening workshop for a small number of advanced practitioners, to work deeply on our own emotions and positioning vis-a-vis our babys and toddlers.
That's when I firse certified with Aletha Solter, in 2004, and enjoyed offering conferences across Belgium and spread this wonderful gift that dear Aletha has offered our children in so many countries, so many languages.
Life challenged me on other matters for a number of years and I discontinued certification in 2012… Now, I have just re-certified (August 2026) and I am enthused by the possibility to help spread Aware Parenting in Germany, where I now live, Italy, and elsewhere in English, French, German, Italian and Spanish.
I am extremely happy and grateful that you have found me and look forward to working with you.
Oh, yes, who's in the picture? Well, after about two decades, I was gifted by Life with a third son, born in May 2026 in Munich, Germany. So yes, I am also once again in my life empathically accompanying a crying baby every day, and look forward to attachment play with him.
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Future Aware Parenting events (in-person & online)
Please note: events are offered in different languages. Each event card indicates the language and all other information.
On this page you are seeing see ONLY Aware Parenting events. You can see all my events, on all I offer, on this page.
Online
Confirmed
Online
DE
Confirmed
EN
Online
Confirmed
IT
“Why babies cry”
“Genitori consapevoli”
“Bewusst Babys wissen es alles!”
📅 20.10.2026
🌐 Online via Zoom (14:00-16:00)
🗣️ German
A workshop on the Aware Parenting perspective on babys' abilities and deep knowledge of what they need
📅 22.09.2026
🌐 Online via Zoom (20:00-21:30)
🗣️ Italian
Discover Aware Parenting: from tears to play, from trauma to bonding, from laughter to non-punitive discipline.
📅 10.09.2026
🌐 Online via Zoom (19:00-20:30)
🗣️ English
Babys know how to take care of their emotions. Come learn the two different kinds of crying and how to accompany tears and…
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Events in preparation
Bring your children
DE
In preparation
In-person
DE
IT
Bring your children
In preparation
In-person
IT
“Aware Parenting - Bewusstes Elternschaft”
“Insieme tra genitori e bimbi/e per giocare sul serio”
📅 To be announced (February 2027)
📍 To be announced, Oberbayern, DE
🗣️ German
A practical & playful discovery of Aware Parenting - togetherness in a safe space.
📅 early 2027
📍 Verbania, Italy
🗣️ Italian
Come & experience how attachment play can bring you closer to your child.
If you wish to be informed when the details are confirmed, you can get in touch.
If you wish to be informed when the details are confirmed, you can get in touch.