Is there such a thing as giving your child too much attention? In this episode, Abby tells a story of a friend whose husband finally put his foot down and said, “Our kids are running our house.” His biggest frustration was that their evenings are completely centered around kid activities. They only have one night a week when they’re not driving to practice or a friend’s house to play. Abby’s friend argues they can’t drive themselves! She thinks she’s making sacrifices that are part of parenting. The final straw for her husband was when their 7-year-old son knocked on their bedroom door at an inopportune time and asked if he could climb in bed with them. She has a hard time saying no; she knows he’s not always going to be little and want to cuddle. So she told her husband their son would only stay for a few minutes. But the moment passed and everyone fell asleep.
Abby’s friend’s story isn’t rare. It feels a bit like family life is set up to make children the sun and parents the planets that orbit around them. Some of this child-focused lifestyle is unavoidable, but other times, parents make choices that communicate to the children that their needs come first. One example is not having any alone time with your husband. Another is constantly allowing interruptions. If your child is not neurodivergent or living with another special need, it might be in his best interest to let him know his needs don’t always come first.
So how do you undo bad habits that have told your child he’s the center of the universe? One key is awareness, which we hope this episode brings you. Another is intentional connection, like conversations and one-on-one time.
Articles We Mentioned
3 Signs Your Child Is Feeling Ignored
7 Signs You’re Giving Your Child Too Much Attention
Printables We Think You’ll Like
What’s a sign you’ve turned over the controls to your kids? How do you get them back? Tell us in the comments below.
