How do you cope with these kinds of situations?

Do you find yourself striving to have a more patient, gentle approach to your parenting?

When I first began on my journey to applying universal principles to family life, I found this to be one of the major hurdles that I HAD to get over. Yes – there was a lot of stress in my life. Single mother, full time corporate exec, dealing with family health issues – you name it. But I didn’t want all of those things continually coming together to create a short fuse that was ready to blow just when it could affect my daughter the most.

Let’s face it – as a parent, it can often be difficult to keep your cool – but it can be done. There are many ways to relieve stress and improve your overall parenting experience. Here are 8 parenting tips you can act on right now to start finding more bliss within the chaos during your parenting journey.

1. Admit That You Aren’t Perfect. Only a superhuman could juggle every aspect of their adult lives in perfection. It’s just not realistic to feel that you should be the one exception – and incredibly freeing to admit that you don’t have to. When you do find yourself making a “mistake” acknowledge it – not only to yourself, but also to your children.
2. Allow Yourself Some Time Off. Whether it’s an uninterrupted bath or simply allowing time for daily meditation, you are permitted and entitled to some personal time once in a while. In fact, your mental well-being depends on it!
3. Engage the kids in “Family Meetings”. Children as young as 2 or 3 have opinions – and they can and should be taken into consideration. You can engage your children during family meeting time. Make them a part of the decision making process. For example, let the kids decide on a family activity, like choosing the board game or card game on game night. Family meetings foster healthy communication and problem solving between adults and children.
4. Support. Make sure you have a support network. Support networks that offer unbiased suggestions and support are invaluable! Engage a mentor or other parenting expert for unbiased support. You’ll be glad that you did.
5. Stay Rested. Sometimes eight hours of sleep every night isn’t realistic for parents of young children. So you need to be able to catch a cat nap or a few moments of quiet time whenever you can. Even if you sit quietly for just a few moments in your car before you transition from the office to the drive home, you’ll be recharging your batteries. If you can, take a 10 or 15 minute power nap during your lunch time. Sleep whenever you get the chance. Sleep deprivation can tremendously shorten your fuse.
6. Eat Well. Proper nutrition helps keep you focused and it helps your immune system function at optimal levels. Don’t skip meals when you’re running behind or because you get distracted. If your immune system gets run down, you are more susceptible to getting sick. When you get sick, you’ll still be responsible for being a parent. You wouldn’t send your child off to school or to bed without eating, and the same goes for you – you need to eat balanced meals.
7. Exercise. You don’t need to join a gym to reap the benefits of exercise. Putting some music on and dancing with your children is a great way to exercise and engage your children at the same time. Many parents think they don’t have time to join a local gym, and many times parents are in situations where a sitter is not available. The truth is, most gyms offer child care so you can take your child along with you. Get some regular exercise to keep your energy level up. Regular exercise helps alleviate stress in a big way.
8. Learn To Laugh. Laugh at yourself! If you can think of the absurdity of things like they are a grand comedy and laugh at the craziness of it all, you’ll be in a much better mood. Life is supposed to be fun! So what if your toddler is having the melt down of all melt downs! Remember that young children are learning how to express themselves and leave it at that.

Once when I was shopping during the holidays I noticed a young mother and her young son moving pretty quickly through the store. It was obvious that her son had been asking her repeatedly for a toy. The boy was standing in the area of the cart where you place your items. He was a really cute kid. After hearing his mom say over and over again to him that he was going to have to wait for the toy he’d been bugging her to buy him, he raised his arms to the sky and in a very melodramatic voice said, “For the love of humanity, won’t someone help me out here?!”

Well, that just cracked me up! I looked at his mom and at first glance she seemed completely unfazed by his performance. She had a small, almost unnoticeable little grin on her face. Smiling silently to herself, she was laughing on the inside I am sure.

When life comes at you too fast, step away and take a break. Do yourself and your kids a huge favor get to the place of knowing that everything really is going to be okay – that this too shall pass. After all, what’s the worst that can come of spilled milk? It is not the end of the world. It is just a minor hiccup in the day of a parent.

Seeing you as having the parenting experience you dream of.

~Peace

Cyndi Cerny
Founder Blissful Transformation of the Chaotic Family
www.BlissfullyTransformChaoticFamily.com
Cyndi@BlissfullyTransformChaoticFamily.com