The Oopsie-Daisy Technique

Life Lessons from a Toddler

Have you heard of the Oopsie-daisy technique? No? Well, it’s time to learn.

My current favourite activity is looking after my granddaughter, Georgia. She’s turning two in October, and she’s teaching me far more than I ever expected. If someone had told me years ago that, as a septuagenarian, I’d be learning life lessons from a toddler, I would have smiled politely and assumed they were being a bit… imaginative. But the truth is, every single day I spend with this little person, I learn something, often more than I realise.

I could probably write a whole book about what children can teach us, but today I want to focus on one particular lesson: the Oopsie-daisy technique. 😊

Lately, I’ve noticed how often people are hard on themselves. They come to sessions and immediately start by telling me how things didn’t go as planned, how disappointed they are. I often hear them say, “I can’t”, sometimes repeating it over and over. Just recently, someone said “I can’t” nine times in less than two minutes while reflecting on their week, without even noticing.

People struggling with eating distress/eating disorders are especially hard on themselves, and lately, I’ve noticed it’s getting worse. They carry this constant sense of not being good enough into their recovery. But here’s the thing: progress isn’t about perfection. Hardship and self-criticism don’t motivate healing. What does help is making things easier, gentler, and more compassionate for ourselves. We don’t get very far by carrying guilt and shame in our backpacks.

And now, back to Georgia, and the magic of the oopsie-daisy. Every single time she falls, she cheerfully says, “Oopsie-daisy!” Then she pops right back up and keeps going, without a second thought. No tantrum. No shame spiral. No overthinking. Just a bright little “oopsie-daisy” and onwards.

Yesterday, we were at the park again. She must have hit the ground a good few times, tripped over twigs, uneven paths, even her own feet, but not once did she whine or fuss. Nope. Just “Oopsie-daisy” and off she went again, as if gravity were just a minor inconvenience.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we all took a page out of Georgia’s book?

Imagine if, instead of beating ourselves up when we stumble, in life, at work, in recovery, we simply smiled, said “Oopsie-daisy,” and tried again. No drama. No mental flogging. Just a quiet acknowledgment that falling is part of walking.

We forget that when we were little, we fell down a lot, but did we stop trying to walk? No. We kept going, because something deep inside us knew that falling wasn’t failure, it was learning. Maybe we don’t grow out of that truth, maybe we just forget it. And maybe, just maybe, little ones like Georgia are here to remind us.

So here’s my invitation to you: next time you feel like you’ve messed up, whether it’s skipping something you meant to do, eating something off-plan, or just having a rough day, practice saying “Oopsie-daisy” instead of “I’m such a mess.” Get back up like a toddler on a mission. You might just find it’s a whole lot easier to keep going when you’re not dragging guilt along for the ride.

Stay tuned, Georgia’s got more life lessons coming. And I promise I’ll keep passing them along. Preferably before she starts charging me consultancy fees.

Thank you for reading it

Mx