Being a parent is not an easy job. Outside of the standard perks of being puked on and occasionally peed on, there are instances and situations that come along that we just can’t resolve in a quick and timely manner. Not like putting on a clean shirt. These challenges are more emotional in nature and can cause sleepless nights and countless Google searches.

For many parents, these include:

• Fear of the “what-ifs” – Going to the park is anything but a “walk in the park.” As parents, we adopt the eagle-eye vision. We need to be able to spot our child within a second’s time or deal with several more seconds of absolute certainty that they’ve been kidnapped. The thought of something happening to them gives us an inability to relax. 
• Unknown Medical Issues – A parent can sniff out a new symptom from a mile away. Fevers never go undetected. But narrowing it down to a specific illness and diagnosis is anything but easy. This is why parents log hours upon hours on Google and pediatric health sites. When a doctor isn’t available and it doesn’t seem critical enough for urgent care or the ER, the Internet becomes our best friend.
• Bullying – At home, your child is in a safe and loving cocoon. But out in the big world, they encounter the full spectrum of humanity. As a parent, we want our children to be safe from harm and not have to deal with other children’s anger and insensitivity. With the pervasiveness of school bullying, it’s hard to not be concerned.
• We’re Doing It Wrong – We read all the parenting books and scout every parenting website, but we never feel like it’s enough. Our worries range from not feeding them the healthiest food to wondering if we are disciplining them correctly. We think about their future and wonder if our acts will help or harm them.
• We Aren’t Enough – We desperately want for our children to love us as we age. As parents, we often fear that as they grow older our children won’t approve of how we raised them or they will harbor resentment towards choices we made for them. Being that many of us are nothing without our kids, this is one of our worst nightmares.

It’s not an easy job walking through life and trying to parent in the best way we know how. What makes it even more difficult is the emotional strain that we put on ourselves. Although it is unlikely that these concerns will go away, we have to remember to breathe. Many things in life are out of our control, and we need to realize that the odds of something happening are actually quite slim. As parents, our job is only for a brief period of time in the grand scheme of things. Enjoying it and making memories that last needs to be high on our priority list of tasks… after changing diapers and feeding, of course.