Anybody else?
I'm struggling with my 4 year old who is the most defiant child I know. He won't get dressed in the morning, it's about a 3 hour operation to get out of the house. He doesn't listen. If I tell him off, or tell him to stop, he just laughs in my face and carries on. Gentle parenting does not work either. I'm overstimulated, and just struggling to he a Mum. There is always a distraction, a delay tactics, something he needs to do first which is more important to him, but said thing only becomes a thing when he needs to do something such as get dressed, brush teeth, have a bath. He is always on the go. Even after a 10 hour day at nursery, he is full of beans and just frankly very overstimulating.
The bad days are hard, and to be honest, the bad days are more commonnl than the good. This is not a phase, hes been in this 'phase' for about a year, so I think its safe to say, it is more than a phase.
I'm currently on maternity leave right now with my second and if I'm totally honest, I absolutely cannot wait to get back to work.
I know this probably makes me a bad parent, but I need something for me. Parenting is hard, gruelling and if I'm gonna be totally honest, pretty boring and frustrating at times 😔.
Please can somebody tell me I'm not alone, all my friends children seem so well behaved, my child just isn't and it's so so frustrating. All my energy is gone by the end of the day, to the point I don't even want to talk to my husband so its affecting our relationship. I feel distant and disconnected. To say I regret having children would be a strong statement but my 4 year old really does it make so unenjoyable and difficult.
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I feel for you! My girl is very similar to this.
Getting dressed in the morning and for bed are a battle; it's exhausting!
Gone are the days when a full day at nursery tires her out; she is non-stop when she gets home until she gets overtired and upset and bedtime doesn't go to plan!
Thankfully I only have the 1 to contend with, I honestly don't know how people survive with 2 or more children, it's definitely not for me (I'm in the one and done camp!).
I'm so exhausted that I'm often falling asleep before 9pm most nights.
I have no words of advice, but just know I think a lot of us are going through a similar situation. It will get easier (I keep telling myself this!).
I try to focus on the good parts like my girl is so articulate that we do enjoy some great (funny) chats, we have some lovely days out together when time allows.
Stay strong, you're doing great considering you have another little one that demands your attention too x