Jahnavi Sarma
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You need to find a balance in your parenting style. Do what works best for you. Be sure that you are loving yet firm. @Shutterstock
Parenting is not easy, and it takes a lot of time and effort. When you first become a parent, you are assailed with well-intentioned advice from well-wishers, friends and family. But ultimately, you have to take a call and decide on the best way to raise your child. This can be a daunting task. It is a fact that you want to give the best to your child. But in the process, you may end up making mistakes and adopting parenting practices that may not be perfect for your child.
We live in a fast-paced world where fads and styles keep changing at a rapid pace. In this scenario, parenting styles also undergo changes. But the needs of the child remain the same. Every child needs an environment of safety, structure, support, and love. It is true that most parents work hard to give their child just this. But at the same time, you, as a parent, must also realise that your child has a unique temperament, personality and goals. You may want to push your child down a certain path. But what is more important is to nurture a child and make sure that he or she grows up to be a capable person who can independently interact with the world and pursue their goals successfully.
To be a good parent, you need to consciously avoid the dangers of abuse, neglect or overindulgence. You need to make your child's safety and health the first priorities. You also need to take care to support their emotional well-being and instill the right social skills in them. You must also that they have the right stimuli for intellectual development. Be sensitive and warm. All this will help them to be responsible and successful members of society when they grow up.
There are a few parenting styles that you need to avoid if you want the best for your child. Here are some of them.
The first thing you must avoid doing is overparenting your child. One example of this style of parenting is 'helicopter parenting' and 'snowplow parenting'. In the former, parent are constantly monitoring their child and keeping him or her out of harm's way. In the latter, all real and perceived obstacles are removed from a child's path by parents. This can have a negative impact on a child and lead to mental health problems. Children with such parents also have major self-esteem issues and are less independent.
As opposed to the previous style of parenting, too-little parenting is the other end of the spectrum. Here there is a lack of discernable parental engagement during their child's growing up years. This kind of parenting can lead to behavioral problems in a child. They begin to rely more on their peers and are led by them in most things. Incidentally, authoritarian styles of parenting can also have the same effect on children.
You need to find a balance in your parenting style. Do what works best for you. Be sure that you are loving yet firm. Allow your child enough space to pursue his or own interests. Try and make them independent. Don't try to shield them from failure as this too can teach them a lot.