Parental Challenges – Every Parent’s Nightmare!

Parenting has become and still keeps becoming more and more challenging as the years go by. Long gone are the days when parents could let their children play in the neighbourhood without having to worry about their safety. With the rise in crime rates especially paedophilia & increase in kidnappings as well as a rise in broken relationships, parenting has been forced to evolve with time. Parenting is thus no longer a walk in the park!

However apart from the obvious challenges faced by parents. There are some common parenting challenges that today’s parents face more so.

1. Lack Of Time- This one is a fairly common parental challenge for working parents. They barely get time to cater to their child. Instead, children, these days are left to grow up with nannies/babysitters.

How to resolve this: Make some time. Yes, work can be overwhelming but there are no shortcuts. If you want to be able to have that bonding with your child then ‘make some time’. Whatever time you get, try and spend as much of it as possible with your child, especially over the weekends. Bonding isn’t just a one-time thing. It’s a continual process and is also necessary for developing trust.

2. Incessantly Worrying- This is extremely common given the fact that there are so many things happening around the world… pedophiliacs, kidnappers, rapists, etc etc. The problem list is just endless. However, worrying incessantly doesn’t really help.

How to resolve this: As harsh as it may sound, just know that there’s only so much you can do to keep your child safe. You teach them as early as possible about ‘stranger touch’ and saying no to strangers. Educating the child early is important as this enables the child to be prepared.

3. Social Media Influence- Remember when the child is young you can control what and how much of exposure they get. However, as they enter their teens this gets slightly difficult.

How to resolve this: In this day and age it’s always better to be a companion to your child rather than a strict parent. Discipline is one thing but over-disciplining the child may lead them to become rebellious. Talk to them openly about the pros and cons, and then let them decide with your guidance, not force.

4. Lack Of Outdoor Activities/More Time On The Gadgets- Children as young as 2 and even younger have started getting fixated to watching cartoons, playing games on the tablet or phone.

How to resolve this: Restrict the amount of time your child can spend on the tablet/phone. Encourage outdoor activities more. This can be fun and better for the child’s health too.

5. Societal Influence- Society has a lot of influence on parenting today. Parents tend to idealise other cultures and push the same values on their children, least realising it’s doing more harm than good.

How to resolve this: First accept who you are and where you come from proudly. Yes, most parents tend to settle abroad and it’s okay to be influenced a little. But don’t start idealising. Remember your children need to know where their roots belong so that they can accept the same and grow up proudly without having any identity crisis, low self-esteem or low self-confidence, in other words, make your child feel comfortable in their own skin.