With so much parenting information and advice now available in books, magazines, internet blogs and “ezines”, parents are feeling tremendous pressure in figuring out how to precisely navigate the parenting journey. In addition, advice from friends and relatives – especially grandparents – makes the experience even more confusing. This week we will relieve some of the pressure parents are feeling to be perfect parents and to alleviate their fears that a parental mistake will have dire consequences for their children. We begin with debunking the pervasive myth that parenting accounts completely for how our kids turn out. We provide insights into the external, often uncontrollable by parents, events that shape our children’s future.

On one hand, this truth appears on the surface to put even more pressure on parents to be perfect about the things they do control. However, by adhering to Family Centered Parenting strategies, parents learn about the most crucial things parents need to do yet still leave room for the occasional parenting mistake. The most fundamental notion for parents to remember is that your children will do what you do, not do what you say. The importance of modeling and the fact that human beings learn by imitation cannot be over stated. For example, when we control our emotions and practice the values we preach, we are teaching our children appropriate ways to deal with the challenges they face on a daily basis. Parents need to remember that they also model that being perfect is not realistic. When a parent makes a mistake, usually a temper driven outburst, the way they handle it sends a clear message to the child that when we mess up we can re-group, make restitution and learn from the experience.

We close with our segment “There’s Got To Be a Better Way” where we relate our personal parenting stories and how what we learned can be the solution for you.

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