For the experience of being a parent — the guilt, the exhaustion, the doubt, and the questions you can’t ask anyone else. Honest support, no judgment.
Nobody tells you that a large part of parenting is second-guessing yourself in private. Whether you handled that properly. Whether you’re doing damage. Whether everyone else finds it this relentless and just doesn’t say.
This category is about you rather than your children — the internal experience of the job.
What people talk about here
Feeling like you’re failing, usually on the basis of one bad afternoon. Discipline that works without leaving you feeling awful. Trying to parent differently from how you were raised, and catching yourself doing it anyway. Losing your temper and the shame afterwards. Having no time, no privacy, and no version of yourself that isn’t someone’s parent. Resentment, which almost everyone feels and almost nobody says. Disagreeing with your partner about how to do this. Single parenting. And the strange grief in each stage ending.
Related categories
- Kids — questions about your children specifically
- New Baby — the first months
- Child Care — services, costs and logistics
- Anger Management — if losing your temper is the main worry
Support beyond the forum
- raisingchildren.net.au — Australian Government-funded, evidence-based parenting information.
- Pregnancy, Birth and Baby — helpline for parenting and early childhood. Call 1800 882 436.
- Beyond Blue — free 24/7 mental health support for you. Call 1300 22 4636.
- Kids Helpline — has a parent line on 1300 30 1300 as well as support for ages 5–25.
If you’re worried about your child’s immediate safety, call 000.
How to use this category
This isn’t a place for parenting-philosophy arguments. People post here at their lowest, and being told they’re doing it wrong is the opposite of what’s needed.
Please don’t post your children’s names, schools or photos. And say the honest version — “I don’t enjoy this most days” gets more solidarity here than you’d expect.