Which parenting stage have you found the most challenging so far?

[juliano]

What is the hardest parenting phase you've experienced so far?

Toddler. Only because always on the go. Now at 17 been diagnosed health condition. So this is hardest. Teens generally no issues really

This! My kids are ND and this is a really, really hard stage…

Its the fact that I can’t fix things anymore and I can’t ring my sons employer where I had a really good relationship with school…

that is so good

Teenage 100%

my eldest three are 21 23 24 navigating three teenagers wasn’t fun 🙃
Currently have a 12 year old and she’s a ray of sunshine..NOT!
My youngest is 9 and she’s pure joy atm. If only I could pause her 😩

That’s completely understandable. Health issues can make any stage feel much harder than it otherwise would

Age 40, he's being a complete knob.

At least there's no poo involved" might be the best argument for the teenage years I've seen so far

DD is 12.5 and in recent months I've found it an incredibly difficult phase. Slightly depressed by the thought that I have another 6 years of this 😫

13-16 years. Hormones and mental health issues. Emotionally draining on another level! God I miss the toddler and primary years when you are the centre of their world

One of my friends is having awful trouble with her DS aged late 30s. It's thoroghly miserable for her.

My teen is easy too. Don't get me wrong, we don't always get on, but she is fairly chilled and usually independent. She'll even watch our 6 yo if we're in a tight spot or if neither of them want to come with us somewhere we need to go.

six years without proper sleep sounds incredibly tough. No wonder the early years were the hardest for you

I found baby years hard as my kids didn’t sleep. Toddler year are hard as very full on. Not found teen years too bad yet and DD is 15in Oct: I think having a toddler and teen at the same time makes me look at it a bit differently

Teens definitely! My 14 year old is pretty extreme though the last 2 years have been relentless! I work in a school and the year 9 cohort is often the most difficult

Pre-school with DS. He was wild and full of energy and I struggled to manage his behaviour. It was exhausting and isolating. He was diagnosed with autism at 5 yrs old, so his struggles with social interaction and understanding all made sense eventually!

12/13 yrs with DD. She was lovely, but the Year 8/9 friendship dramas were hard going. Lots of tears and endless situations to support with where I had to bite my lip not to scream ‘just grow up, the lot of you, and stop this petty BS!’ 😆

They are 21 and 18 now, and both lovely human beings to be around.

Teenagers, followed by toddlers. I found the newborn stage easy, but I was lucky enough to have babies who were good sleepers and good eaters. Ages 4-12 were an absolute doddle!

Mine are both adults now and the hardest for me was 1-3, when they're walking but still have no sense so you just spend your life following them around the place 😂 Thankfully my 2 were really good teens

0-2. The lack of sleep and constant supervision is exhausting.

Then 13. Not my own but others vile offspring being cruel to mine at that age. As a parent you are pretty much powerless too.

For DD1 0-3 as she didn’t sleep but once she started school she was easy to parent and has been a dream since. For DS2 it was teens, especially 14-19 due to usual teen/ hormone stuff then age 20-23 due to MH issues ( he’s fine now).

Yeah, I loved the newborn stage as well but I know I was lucky that mine were really good sleepers and didn't cry much

Year 9. Closely followed by uni holidays.

Toddler age for me. I was a SAHM for 3 under 5 and it was relentless, boring, exhausting, diminishing and thankless. It affected my mental health and nearly wrecked my marriage. Thank God they go to nursery at 3, and then school. That helped. I got a job and then farmed out some of the childcare so it wasn’t so bad.

Teens and young adult phases were a dream compared to that. I loved it all more the older they got.

13-15 yr olds. Suddenly dealing with all things grown up (boys, alcohol, friends, drugs, self harm, social media etc etc) - give me a shitting toddler under a table any day! It’s much safer and far less of a worry. Toddlers and babies are exhausting, yes, but nothing like a willful teen going through rebellion.

On the upside, said teen has just completed a-levels and is wonderful now, so there is light at the end of the tunnel for those in the trenches.

Year 9 seems to be getting mentioned a lot in this thread!