Parenting and anger and stress

[sostressedandsad]

I find managing my children unbelievably stressful, and I don’t for a moment think that they are exceptionally difficult children, it’s me. I get tense and wound up and start thinking their behaviour is bad and then start picking at them and making it worse.

We had a horrible day out today and it was me, they were fine (or would have been if I hadn’t kept shouting and screaming at them.)

I genuinely don’t know how to stop; it’s as if the moment takes over and I can’t help myself.

OP this sounds really hard and I have been there (some days I still am).

Are you looking for advice or just to vent really? Can you say any more about it?

I don’t think there’s any parenting advice I haven’t read and for whatever reason can’t seem to put into practice! I probably need some sort of medication but I am not sure what to ask for.

Maybe worth talking to the GP about medication if you haven’t already? They can get you started with therapy options too if it’s something you’d consider?

I know this sounds like a huge cop out but I genuinely have no idea where I’d fit therapy in, a huge problem for me is constant running around and meeting myself coming back.

No wonder at all you’re on a short fuse if you’re dealing with all that! I struggle with this myself but are there things you can drop? Anything at all? Even a temporary lowering of standards to reduce the pressure?

Is there anyone around you who knows what you’re going through and be drafted in to help?

It’s all pretty essential though - it’s school and work and even if I do cut down on children’s activities then I have them in the house which I think may be worse 😅

@sostressedandsad We’re tou told off a lot as a child?

I can get very shouty, and angry at my children, and it’s because I was always told off and told to be quite as a child, I’ve then done the same.

I really lost it with my daughter one day, really upsetting her and upsetting/shocking me and DH. That was the trigger I needed to explore HRT. I had so many symptoms but the effect on DD1 was too much. I just felt complete rage.

Maybe irrelevant for you, but I thought it was worth mentioning, just in case..

OP this is me, I have had the exact same day as you and the shouting makes it worse. I am emulating my childhood and I am trying to get HRT. No real advice, but solidarity, you are not alone