Parental Stress - Coping With Kids

By Margaret Tye

Rearing well adjusted children is a real accomplishment on the part of any parent and with today’s trend and lifestyle it is a hard task. Nowadays training kids begins at birth. There are lots of articles written on dealing with newborn babies or coping with toddlers, particularly for new moms, but surprisingly, there is little guidance on how to deal or cope with parental stress.

Several children under the age of five can be really troublesome and handling them is a tiring task. Parents really have to work hard as the kids at that age demand lot of time and attention.
This really stresses the parent and makes them feel trapped. Parents have to be magically equipped with patience, parental love and mothering instinct.

Growing children wreck a tidy room or scatter toys and cushions around the house. Potty training is other serious issue and you have to be geared to deal with accidents, while washing their hands is like playing in a swimming pool. Kids like to explore everything and they learn from such exploration. Hence stopping them would curb their inquisitiveness. As a parent you should tackle these issues with care and lot of patience, as love and patience builds a strong foundation in the parent and child relationship.

Due to a stressful lifestyle, many relationships break up and hence there are a lot of single parents around. Such single parents find parenting more difficult as compared to a couple.
Managing kids and a career is like walking on two rails. They are usually stressed by running around trying to manage things, and this sometimes leaves the kids neglected. Sometimes parents are not able to pursue their own dreams because they are busy tackling issues related to their kids.

Luckily nowadays there are some voluntary organizations where help can be sought. These organizations offer help for few hours each week like baby-sitting and this help can give the parents some hours of respite. Moms can get free time to mow the lawn, do some home decoration, pursue their passions or even shop. With kids growing and their demands increasing day by day, mothers lose their identity and get hassled under the pressure.

If you find yourself in this situation, don’t be depressed if you fail, as you are a normal human being. Mistakes can happen as there are limitations, hence accept them and do your best. Clean the rooms one by one and not like a superwoman. If you can, try and reduce the furniture or clear off the carpets as they are the things that delay cleaning.

It doesn't matter if the house isn't spotless. What matters is that you spend time playing and having fun with your kids. You will all benefit and at the end of the day you may feel more cheerful and capable of clearing some of the mess. Then give yourself half an hour to soak in the bath, or even do your nails.

Margaret Tye runs the From Tots 2 Teens - Parental Stress website.