Tag: transitional

My Child’s Big Transitions Hit Me Just As Hard

Leave a comment

I always imagined myself to be tough. I have dealt with a lot of changes in stride, no matter what the challenge was. I’ve been through depression and loss and moves and employment changes. I’ve fallen and gotten up and fallen and gotten up.

I thought I had finally gotten to a point where a lot of every day stress was behind me since I am a stay-at-home mom now. I’m not technically working so the regular employment stresses are gone. I have a loving relationship and pretty good kids. I have a great family who is always there when I need them.

I thought that a lot of the issues I’d have now would be things like potty training and breaking up fights. I thought I’d be struggling with finding myself again and readjusting to a new normal.

So all of this turned out to be true. The biggest thing that hit me though in the last few weeks is that when my kids go through a big transition, I go through it too.

My children are both entering a new phase in their lives. It’ll be a little scary for them and completely new. I thought that I’d be the rock and help them get through it. I’d planned for it so we wouldn’t be overwhelmed with a lot at once and even spread a few activities out so the kids had time to adjust.

Then the nightmares started. The constant anxiety started. I have been feeling like I’ve been standing on the edge of a breakdown for weeks. The problem was that I couldn’t put my finger on why. There isn’t anything happening that we haven’t been preparing for. There isn’t anything happening that I have not researched and asked fellow parents and other teachers about. I’ve been getting the kids prepared as well so hopefully, there will be less tears all around.

I guess I needed the support too. I didn’t know that. No one talks about how it affects you as a parent when your kids have a big change. No one talks about how debilitating it is when the anxiety hits you. It’s already so much that you’re trying to protect your kids 24 hours a day with the most basic things like stairs and table corners and tree branches and dogs. Now, the worries start on how you will protect them when they aren’t with you.

I thought I had it but I don’t think I do. I think I feel a total loss of control to the point where I’ve imagined telling my husband that I’ll homeschool my kids even though I know that that isn’t a real possibility for me because it’s not the best option for any of us. I’ve always been a control freak so this is really much harder for me than I thought it would be. But I didn’t realize it until today.

It’s crazy how much affects you when it comes to your kids. There is a lot I can handle but anything regarding these children is amplified. I want to make sure that they are safe no matter what.

I think the biggest thing I’m learning from this (besides that I will figure out how to deal with all of it) is that I’m not alone in feeling this. And that validation helps tremendously.

I Have Insecurities…Do You?

Leave a comment

I know this is something none of us want to admit in public but most of us have insecurities. We put up this front, this cover so that no one will ever see the madness or the struggles that happen inside of our heads. 

I know I definitely do this. It’s surprising to me when I hear that people tell me that I seem so strong and confident because I know that on the inside, I feel anything but. 

Everyone goes through this. Again, I think it’s something we don’t talk about. There are very few people who don’t feel insecurity at some point. If you don’t, I’d love to know your secret so I can be in the same place. 

A lot of us feel it with regards to our significant other. How can we guarantee that that person will always love us unconditionally? A lot of us feel it about our careers, our friends, our place in the world. There are so many aspects and to always be sure of yourself in this ever-changing world is difficult. 

I think a sign of security is when you know and understand that things will change and are able to accept it. We can’t control much in the world but we can control our reactions and our strength to deal with it. I have to remind myself all of the time that I have been through a lot of hard times and somehow, I keep going. And even though it doesn’t always feel like it, things have come out for the better. 

At this moment, I am going through a lot of insecurity due to a lot of transitional phases in my life happening all at once. But I just keep thinking that eventually, it will all make sense and I will feel that I am right where I am supposed to be. That’s where I always was.