My mom used to say that you could go to school to learn how to be anything…except a parent. There is no training manual for motherhood, no way of knowing if you’re doing it right – no way of even knowing if all of your efforts will be enough to keep your kids from facing struggles you won’t know how to handle.
As a mom, I have raised a son with ADHD, a daughter who suffered from severe depression because of feelings of abandonment by her biological mom, and a son with Down Syndrome. Parker was born with a cataract, has a sensory integration disorder, and a seizure disorder. Anika spent much of her young life suffering from bronchitis and ear infections. They present an array of different challenges, but nothing more than any other mom has to handle with her own kids. I’ve learned that even if parents don’t get training, there are definitely resources out there to help. I’m not the first mom to raise a kid with a sensory integration disorder – and definitely not the first mom dealing with ADHD.
I rely on these websites to answer questions about everything from health issues to diets:
Web MD
KidsHealth.org
Byte Me – Parent Dental Guide
And there are four books that I think every parent/expecting mom should read – even if your child doesn’t suffer from a particular disorder, these books offer brilliant suggestions for child rearing:
1. What To Expect When You’re Expecting
2. Raising a Sensory Smart Child
3. No-Nonsense Parenting for Today’s Teenager
4. Parenting Children with ADHD
(These are affiliate links from which I make a tiny commission if you buy here that helps offset the cost of running this site).
And of course, I would love to share my book with every stepmom:
