“I struggled when I was a kid and I turned out fine.”
That’s what a mom was recently told by a family member.
… and you know what this dare-to-be-different mom said?
“But did you turn out okay?”
… oh yes she did say that!
What Doesn’t Kill You Doesn’t Necessarily Make You Stronger
… or that your child will grow out of it
But here’s the thing this mom pointed out to her brother.
“Childhood isn’t meant to be a struggle or traumatic.”
The #1 Reason Moms Seek Help
The #1 reason moms reach out to me is NOT because they want their child to learn well and regulate their emotions.
(Of course they want that.)
But the real reason is how the learning and behaviour difficulties are affecting their child’s quality of life.
These are highly-in-tune moms like you who want their child to enjoy their childhood.
… and not come home in tears every time it’s time to do homework.
The Difference Between Coddling & Preserving Childhood
You know about the value of responsibility and how some adversity can instill resilience.
BUT there is a difference between coddling kids and preserving childhood.
There’s a difference between the responsibility of homework and your child calling themselves ‘dumb’ and knowing they have hours of extra practice compared to their peers who are doing less work and getting better grades.
The Questions I Ask All the Time
This mom asked the same questions that I often wonder myself when people tell me they struggled and turned out fine.
What about the impact to your self-esteem and self-image?
Were those struggles really necessary?
Some people do beat the odds despite the cards being stacked against them.
How Kids with Learning & Behaviour Difficulties Can Thrive
But the difference between “doing okay” and thriving is a child who doesn’t have to soldier it out day-after-day with conventional, band-aid approaches and instead gets the right interventions.