October 21, 2022
top trending topics
🚫 Conversations about alcohol are immanent, talk to your teen about drinking.
😓 If you’re thinking a divorce will make you happier, you may wanna read this.
🔕 #Girldads- Here’s some advice from one dad to another on why your teenage daughter stops talking to you.
💔 It can be tough to see your child experience hurt, help guide them through their breakup.
🔑 Grit just might be the key to successful relationships, work on modeling yours.
tips & tricks for growth
you may be experiencing parental burnout if…
Have you ever felt like you can’t parent any longer? Like you’ve given everything you’ve got, and there’s nothing left? These feelings are a reality for many parents. They are simply exhausted. And if they don’t address it, exhaustion can lead to burnout.
Continual exposure to stressful situations brings on this state of mental and physical exhaustion. For some parents, burnout is all too real.
All parents are at risk, though. Parenting is tough. And parenting can be stressful, especially during the early stages of child development. But what do we do?
Being aware that parental burnout is real and being mindful of the signs can help you get the help you need.
Here are five signs of parental burnout:
😨 Constant exhaustion.
😨 Distancing yourself from your child(ren)
😨 Loss of fulfillment.
😨 Suicidal thoughts or ideas of escape.*
😨 Being violent or neglectful toward your child(ren).**
It’s essential to know and recognize the signs of parental burnout.
Any parent is susceptible to burnout if there’s an imbalance between the stress and their resources. Burnout is preventable, and help is available, too.
You can take steps today to stop the cycle. Here’s How to Stop the Cycle of Parental Burnout.
*If you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts, there are a number of websites and organizations with excellent resources for you. HelpGuide is a great place to start, along with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or 988.
**Contact the National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-CHILD (1-800-422-4453) for more resources or to report abuse.
strengthen your friendships
Long before our homes had living rooms and dens; even before they had sitting rooms or drawing rooms, most houses had a room called a parlor. The purpose of the parlor was to have a room set apart for simple chitchat. Sliding doors even allowed the parlor to be cut off from the rest of the house for intimate, private conversations.
We used to think conversations were so vital that we had a room in our home for them. We used to value and prioritize conversations so highly that we built a particular room in our homes which was basically named “to speak.”
Times have changed…
📲Face-to-face, in-person conversations are becoming more infrequent. We text, group chat, self-checkout, and app our way through our day. I’m genuinely expecting the phrase “keep in touch” to evolve into “keep in text.” (How is that not a thing yet?)
📵 Technology isn’t the problem. In fact, technology can allow us to stay connected to people in ways far superior to the best parlor. We do need some balance, though. There’s just something about face-to-face conversation that doesn’t translate into ones and zeros on our smartphones. The mediums we use to communicate dictate how we communicate. We need to revisit the lost art of conversation…
let’s get REALatable
It’s time to take things a step further & get a little intimate with a Q&A. What do you say?😉 Learn a little bit about the faces behind all of this relationship gold. This week we’re chatting with Lauren Hall, wife of 7 years to husband Daniel, toddler/boy mama, dog mama, and the President & CEO here at First Things First. Let’s get REALatable💛 & learn a little bit about her:
Q: First celebrity crush?
A: 💔 My first celebrity boyfriend (it was always more than a crush in my mind, it was commitment) was Leonardo DiCaprio. Keep in mind this was in the late 90’s, when he starred in Titanic and Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet. I wrote him letters weekly and told him he could sleep in my big brother’s bunk bed. He could even have top bunk! Sadly, he never showed up for my slumber party offers.
Q: What’s your personal motto or mantra?
A: 💡My life verse: “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.” John 14:1 Growing up, I was super close to my Papaw. (That’s the way we Southerners say “Grandpa”). He was killed in a car accident when I was 9, but the last sermon he preached was on this passage. I’ve always carried it with me as a way of life, and to help me recenter my thoughts when anxiety or doubt sets in.💛
Q: Favorite movie series?
A: 🎬 IMO, all of the BEST movie series are based on even better book series. My favorite book and movie series of all-time is The Lord of the Rings Trilogy. I love rooting for the underdog and seeing the complex battle between good and evil, light and darkness. It’s a deep allegory for humanity, but it always provides a sense of hope and purpose for the reader/viewer. Amazon recently released The Rings of Power, which is the precursor to The Lord of the Rings. If you’re looking for your next family binge (preferably with older children), check it out here.
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