The day you become a parent changes everything and there will always have to be a give and take to find the balance that our souls so desperately crave. The problem lies in the fact that for many of us, while we know parenthood is an amazing blessing, it often turns into an all take experience.
As parents, we are desperate to understand and help our children succeed and prevail over any challenges that may come their way. Far too often I see parents who, out of the most genuine love, lose themselves while helping their children.
I believe that cases of this increase when your child may need extra interventions and have daily struggles that require more to get through the basics.
Having a child diagnosed on the spectrum can bring a variety of different emotions and responsibilities depending on the day. Your priorities often change because they have to, and the scale of give and take seems to tip even more off balance.
While you are in love with your child and grateful for them you are also tired, stressed, and often worried. The stress of processing your reality and navigating it year after year can add a lot of stress to the other members in the household as well.
Now to get to the good stuff! It’s time to put all that aside and think about YOU!
It’s time to get some balance in your life and that means that as parents we need to take some time to be selfish. Just go with me here and I promise you that in the end the other members of your household will be grateful, and so will you.
I get it, you may not have the time, money, or energy for anything extra. However, those are all excuses, so get out your calendar because it’s about time you penciled yourself and your priorities in.
Here are a few steps you need to take in order to keep yourself happy, healthy, and functioning:
Jessica joins aspergers101 team of writers as a single mother of two extraordinary children who believes that all children deserve the love and acceptance that they give out. Follow Jessica in the Family section of aspergers101 and share in her personal stories as she will cry and laugh her way through life. Jessica blogs regularly on her site, My Extraordinary Child, a place where parenting is discussed, tears and sarcasm come to meet, and differences are celebrated. “Unless the world stops limiting opportunities for people of all abilities, I never will. Join me on a journey of tears, laughter, and courage”. -Jessica Nieminski