The Stress of Parenting

"There are 6 triggers for bad behavior: tiredness and hunger; an immature brain; 

unmet psychological needs; intense emotions; parental stress; 

and a parenting style that activates the alarm systems in a child's lower brain."

 - The Science of Parenting by Margot Sunderland, DK.

I got up at 5 this morning, unable to go back to sleep.  Thoughts about CH made me pick up this book - again.

Tiredness and hunger - CH is constantly asking for something to eat.

An immature brain - "Trying times with under-fives are often the result of immature brain systems" - Oh yeah, CH is only 4.

Unmet psychological needs - What could that be?

Intense emotions - Have I been missing her cues?

Parental stress - I have been rushing for deadlines.  Figures.

A Parenting style that activates the alarm systems in a child's lower brain - A good reminder that I need some self-reflection and adjustments.

For now, I'd better dig into "Mastering CSS" before waking the kids up for school.

Uninterrupted Play

Yelling "go do this" and "go do that" at the kids can become habitual unless one stops to look at what the kids are up to before doing so.

Enjoying a cookie by the window on a lazy afternoon, behind the blinds, away from mommy's prying eyes...I couldn't bring myself to spoil their moment.

Flashlight Earpick

I used to wonder why the cotton buds and the Ear Drops did not help ease my children's ear pain or itchiness.

Prior visits to the family doctor to flush my children's ears and extracting ear wax cost me S$40 per visit. On one visit, the doctor was unable to clear one of CH's ear and I was prescribed Tropex to help soften the ear wax. "Then what?" I had wondered. Sure enough, my 3 year-old daughter still complained of itchy ear.

This morning, I had a surprise find at a newspaper stand - this Flashlight Earpick from China. As I pulled back her ear and peered in with the Flashlight Earpick, I could see something stuck on the side of her ear canal.

That was when Tropex came in handy! It helped to soften the ear wax somewhat and I was able to extract a solid ear wax about 1cm big! After that, I applied Fracitin to disinfect the ear.

And the amazing thing was, this Flashlight Earpick from China cost me only S$2.50! And none was available at the Pharmacy!