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What to do when you’ve run out of patience with your DC?

8 replies

absolutelybatty · 26/03/2026 16:46

What it says on the tin. I posted recently about my kids driving me mad. I love them to bits but often by the end of the day I just can’t dredge up any more patience. I’m just used up. By tea they’re a bit silly/whiny/etc and whilst they’ve had snacks and outdoor play, I’m just quite annoyed by their…being children? I don’t know. I feel bad losing my patience but I when it’s the eleventy billionth time I’ve asked them to put on their shoes/take off their shoes/whatever, I just can’t bear it anymore.

They’re lovely children and generally well-behaved but I just feel like I need a break or something? Or i perhaps shouldn’t have children because im just not patient enough? They are 3 and 7 and i reckon we have a much longer time to go with this sort of thing. Any help or advise greatly appreciated. I don’t recognise myself when I lose my patience but they are really wearing on me these days. (We don’t have any parents or family who can give us a break unfortunately).

OP posts:
absolutelybatty · 26/03/2026 16:49

I suppose it boils down to me feeling like they deserve a better mum. I see other mums at the park or swimming lessons who laugh when their children do something silly (which is a bit cheeky or annoying) and I just get frustrated and impatient. Do other people feel this way? I’m really feeling quite rubbish about it.

OP posts:
CheeseLand2 · 26/03/2026 17:01

you are a perfectly normal and loving mum. As for those mothers who stand back and chuckle as their child does something naughty, well I’d judge more for them not addressing it rather than thinking how wonderfully laid back they must be!

All children can be immensely annoying especially at those ages. Doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have become a parent. It’s makes you human and we’ve ALL been there! I still get irate at times and I only have one 11 yr old to manage!

up to him being about 7 years old I found parenting very challenging.

you’re doing a great job, please don’t beat yourself up and this level of intensity will not last forever. Try and hold on to that thought.

BertieBotts · 26/03/2026 17:39

There is a really great book called When Your Kids Push Your Buttons which I found really helpful. It's only 99p on kindle which is well worth it.

IME when I'm getting frustrated like that it's because I need a break. You say "we" so you have a partner. Can they give you a break e.g. one evening a week to do your own thing and half a weekend day? Maybe the occasional overnight trip? We don't have family support either but this kind of thing from DH keeps me sane.

The other 2-3 things that I tend to find lead to me feeling this way are when I have got a bit too loose with the rules/boundaries and need to tighten them up, when I've got a bit too lax at enforcing the boundaries/rules I have put in place, or when there's not enough structure to the day in general.

What I mean with the first one is that you probably already do this with safety boundaries - you probably get your 3yo to hold your hand when by roads, walk on the house side and with some distance from the road. You don't let them balance on the kerb while you amble along more than an arm's length away, because if they tripped they would already be in danger and you wouldn't be able to stop them before they fell into the road. When they walk on the non-car side and hold your hand, you can stop them well before they are near any danger and so you don't get to a panicky state about it.

So you can do the same kind of thing with other rules/boundaries as well. Sometimes I fall into the trap of mentally setting the boundary/waiting to intervene until the problem is actually imminent and that means that when they are going over the boundary, it's already a problem and I am in more "emergency brake mode" trying to deal with it, which is not especially calm from me, it's much more reactive and irritated or shouty. If I can anticipate the issue and set the boundary earlier, then I can react in a calmer way. The reason I tend to do this is because I feel like a boundary earlier is "articificial" or unfair and doesn't make sense, and I should only stop behaviour if it's actually a problem, but stopping it earlier on tends to save me being right at the end of my tether when I have to step in and do something.

The second thing is where I might have the boundary too far out/too close to the problem or I might have it in a reasonable place but because I'm trying to be "fun mum" or because I'm too tired or whatever other excuse I make to myself, I'm not actually stepping in to enforce the boundary or saying no to something and I think to myself "Ah just this once", but it's not happening once, it's happening a lot more than that. This creates a problem because you actually have to enforce the rule 95%+ of the time for the DC to actually perceive it as a rule. That means saying no 20 times if you say yes once. What it took me far too long to realise is that when I was saying yes or letting things go more often than not, DC were perceiving that whatever I was saying "yes" to was the rule, and then when I said no, I was just being mean and unreasonable because it was like I was enforcing some kind of restriction/punishment as they had internalised "yes" as the rule. In my head the rule was no but the yes was an exception, but children don't see it like that unless you're being consistent about it.

Then lastly the structure part is because IME children tend to get a bit feral without structure which makes them more prone to the irritating/silly wind up type behaviours, and because it allows me to pace myself a bit throughout the day. When I know what we're doing (roughly) in which slot of the day I can think ahead and do the park trip in the part of the day I've got more energy, or take some time out of playing with them so I can recharge a bit or whatever. I also find it easier to balance their activities as if I don't make a plan they can end up having too much screen time or not enough activity and that also makes their behaviour worse. I'm more naturally a go with the flow type person so I resisted this a lot but it really does make a big difference.

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Tulipsriver · 26/03/2026 17:54

absolutelybatty · 26/03/2026 16:49

I suppose it boils down to me feeling like they deserve a better mum. I see other mums at the park or swimming lessons who laugh when their children do something silly (which is a bit cheeky or annoying) and I just get frustrated and impatient. Do other people feel this way? I’m really feeling quite rubbish about it.

But you're not seeing these parents at teatime when their children are silly, they're tired, and they still have tea to make and a load of washing to put on. Don't fall into the trap of assuming other parents are perfect from a snapshot of their life.

I have a bit of a reputation for being really patient and calm with my children amongst my friends. Honestly, I think it's just because they see me out where my children are more engaged with whatever they're doing (so not following me around with a million demands), and because I'm not naturally shouty person 🤷‍♀️

They don't see me tell my kids that I'm going in the kitchen for 5 minutes because I'm getting frustrated and need to take a few deep breaths. Or tagging my husband in because I'm at the end of my rope. Or pretending to need a poo because it's the only valid excuse for locking myself in a room by myself for a minute.

Everyone gets stressed out by their children's demands sometimes. I'm sure you're a lovely mum.

Pearlstillsinging · 26/03/2026 17:57

It sounds as if you are all over tired by the end of the day. Is there a way you can organise some quiet/recharge your batteries time before you need to do the bedtime routine or whatever it is that is really trying your patience?
Try to get into a routine so that the children automatically go through it step by step without constant reminders. That might mean that you have to be super-organised until the routine is established.

applescentedcandle · 26/03/2026 18:42

If I could go back, I'd definitely spend more money on babysitters to get a break, even if I felt I couldn't afford it. Put it on a credit card! Do what you need to do for your own sanity.

I'm going to add this, it may not be relevant and it's not realy in the spirit of MN, and I'm biased as I had a very frightening mother, but please try not to shout too much (if you do). They don't have other family they spend regular time with, so your treatment of them - good or bad - will be going in deep.

I really understand the exhaustion though (single mum for 9 years since dc were small). There will come a time where they'll actually be great company and even help with the housework, hang in there.

Putthatdownpls · 26/03/2026 20:12

BertieBotts · 26/03/2026 17:39

There is a really great book called When Your Kids Push Your Buttons which I found really helpful. It's only 99p on kindle which is well worth it.

IME when I'm getting frustrated like that it's because I need a break. You say "we" so you have a partner. Can they give you a break e.g. one evening a week to do your own thing and half a weekend day? Maybe the occasional overnight trip? We don't have family support either but this kind of thing from DH keeps me sane.

The other 2-3 things that I tend to find lead to me feeling this way are when I have got a bit too loose with the rules/boundaries and need to tighten them up, when I've got a bit too lax at enforcing the boundaries/rules I have put in place, or when there's not enough structure to the day in general.

What I mean with the first one is that you probably already do this with safety boundaries - you probably get your 3yo to hold your hand when by roads, walk on the house side and with some distance from the road. You don't let them balance on the kerb while you amble along more than an arm's length away, because if they tripped they would already be in danger and you wouldn't be able to stop them before they fell into the road. When they walk on the non-car side and hold your hand, you can stop them well before they are near any danger and so you don't get to a panicky state about it.

So you can do the same kind of thing with other rules/boundaries as well. Sometimes I fall into the trap of mentally setting the boundary/waiting to intervene until the problem is actually imminent and that means that when they are going over the boundary, it's already a problem and I am in more "emergency brake mode" trying to deal with it, which is not especially calm from me, it's much more reactive and irritated or shouty. If I can anticipate the issue and set the boundary earlier, then I can react in a calmer way. The reason I tend to do this is because I feel like a boundary earlier is "articificial" or unfair and doesn't make sense, and I should only stop behaviour if it's actually a problem, but stopping it earlier on tends to save me being right at the end of my tether when I have to step in and do something.

The second thing is where I might have the boundary too far out/too close to the problem or I might have it in a reasonable place but because I'm trying to be "fun mum" or because I'm too tired or whatever other excuse I make to myself, I'm not actually stepping in to enforce the boundary or saying no to something and I think to myself "Ah just this once", but it's not happening once, it's happening a lot more than that. This creates a problem because you actually have to enforce the rule 95%+ of the time for the DC to actually perceive it as a rule. That means saying no 20 times if you say yes once. What it took me far too long to realise is that when I was saying yes or letting things go more often than not, DC were perceiving that whatever I was saying "yes" to was the rule, and then when I said no, I was just being mean and unreasonable because it was like I was enforcing some kind of restriction/punishment as they had internalised "yes" as the rule. In my head the rule was no but the yes was an exception, but children don't see it like that unless you're being consistent about it.

Then lastly the structure part is because IME children tend to get a bit feral without structure which makes them more prone to the irritating/silly wind up type behaviours, and because it allows me to pace myself a bit throughout the day. When I know what we're doing (roughly) in which slot of the day I can think ahead and do the park trip in the part of the day I've got more energy, or take some time out of playing with them so I can recharge a bit or whatever. I also find it easier to balance their activities as if I don't make a plan they can end up having too much screen time or not enough activity and that also makes their behaviour worse. I'm more naturally a go with the flow type person so I resisted this a lot but it really does make a big difference.

Thanks for this! I think what you say about setting the boundary earlier, before you reach the equivalent of emergency mode, is really interesting. It’s something I’ve been trying to take on board to make my parenting “crunch points” - leaving the house in the morning and getting everyone upstairs to do bath/bedtime in the evening - easier and calmer. Children are 4, 2 and 0 so can be exasperating at times, but I’ve found that actually becoming exasperated is never helpful!

absolutelybatty · 03/04/2026 18:42

Yes, the crunch points are always the most difficult. Rationally I know that being exasperated (and losing patience, raising my voice, escalating to threats of consequences that I'm not keen to put through) does absolutely nothing (in fact is massively counterproductive) but in the heat of the moment I sort of panic.

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