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PHOTO: SHAJU JOHN
HOW MUCH IS TOO MUCH? Where does one draw the line between good and excessive parenting?
High-pressure parenting
I am a 26-year-old working mom and have an 18-month-old son. From the time of his birth, I seem to have been caught up in the greatest "mommy war" of all time, on whether to work or not. While people cannot stop talking about children not getting enough attention from working parents, I seem to find supermoms all around me, who have given up great careers and are now focusing all that amazing energy on bringing up their kids "the right way".
It seems to me that parenting should largely go by intuition. Is it really that much of big deal if the child does not go to sleep at exactly 8.55 p.m. every night? And why is it so important that the child should come first in all those innumerable tests and exams that happen in school? I have always thought that it is a little silly to obsess over these things but I lack the courage to say it outright to all the supermoms out there.
A lot has been said about the pressure on kids to get ahead in the rat race. What about the pressure that this puts on parents, at least those of us who are not willing to get into the rat race? For the next year, thankfully, my son is too young for me to contend with these issues. Just thinking about all the decisions that I have to make after that is enough to make my head spin. Are there any right answers out there?
Sadhana
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