Put Your Foot Down!
September 30th 2008 12:49
Children are going to rebel. It’s part of life. They’re supposed to do this, especially when they start reaching the age where independence seems more important to them than obedience. This is the natural course of life, so there’s no need fighting it . . . right?
When asked about putting your foot down with your children, as opposed to being lenient which side of the table do you sit on? Do you believe that a child that faces too much discipline and “hawk-eyed” parenting will rebel more? Or do you believe that, if you let things slide, the child is least likely to regress into bad behavior?
This is a subject that is certainly debatable, but there has to be a happy medium for those who are standing on neutral ground and refuse to take sides. The problem? Fear. These parents are afraid to put their foot down in most circumstances ranging from “little” acts of misbehavior to more serious forms of acting out.
Why are parents afraid to put their foot down? This is a question that has been posed in many self-help books, as well as television programming aimed at better parenting tactics. The question remains, though, is there a happy medium? I believe there is, so long as fear is wiped out of the equation. In households where the kids run the show, rather than the parents there is nothing but chaos and havoc.
Be confident in yourself as a reality mom. Don’t be afraid to “run the show” and don’t be afraid to apply disciplinary measures when necessary. It may seem simple enough to read these words; however implementing them in everyday life is a different matter. Seek support from friends and family members whenever possible because, after all, don’t they always say it takes a village to raise a child? Find your village!
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