Parenting is the most difficult job in the world. Being a parent can be quite stressful at times. Parents have to deal with variety of issues during parenthood. As a parent sometimes it’s a big struggle to know what approach to take in particular parenting situation with the children. There are different parenting strategies, methods and techniques that helps you parenting your child and at the time improving relationship with your child. Parenting counselling not only helps you learning new ways to cultivate relationship with your child but also authenticate whether the strategies you use are best fit for your child or needs modifications.
Parenting can be very stressful, especially if you have a child with psychological issues and/or behavioral problems. You may think that you are not stressed, but in reality you probably are and just do not know it. It is important to note that stress can manifest in a variety of ways such as: depression, anxiety, panic attacks, excessive worry, irritability, rage, feelings of hopelessness and helplessness, etc. Stress can also affect your parenting.
Co-Parenting: Co-parenting is a process where two parents work together to raise a child/Children even though they are divorced or separated and no longer live together. Often children are stuck in-between their parents. When parents divorce, it is expected that both parents will be able to cooperate with each other in a mutually civil manner on child-related issues and child care. While there may be occasions when communication between ex-spouses is prohibited by court order (such as when there is a domestic violence restraining order in place), in other cases there is in fact no legal obstacle to ex-spouses constructively dealing with each other if they are both willing to do so. There may be occasions where the parents have so much anger and hatred against each other that they indirectly use their children to take revenge on their partner either by discussing past adult matters with their children portraying negative impact about the other parent in child’s mind or to create sympathy for one’s self from the child being portraying oneself as a victim.
While there are many ex-spouses who successfully make the transition from divorce into mutually respectful co-parenting, there are others who are either unable or unwilling to do so, even though their children would clearly benefit from such an arrangement. Instead, there is lingering bad blood from a failed marriage and needlessly nasty divorce, which directly and endlessly threatens the peace and tranquility of parents and children alike.
Co-parenting counseling is simply designed to create an environment for the children where they feel that both parents love them and respect each other in spite of failed marriage or the divorce. Rather, co-parenting counseling is designed to help both parties peacefully co-exist in a way where they can address issues concerning their children without having to endless spend time, money, and negative energies on unnecessary battles and repeated return trips to court after divorce.
Most importantly, a willingness to attend co-parenting counseling may send a very important and positive message to children of divorce that their parents are attempting to work together through compromise, flexibility, and willingness to attempt to change a poor relationship into a functional and mutually beneficial one.
If you feel overwhelmed with parenting responsibilities or if you have parenting issues that you just cannot resolve, then it is time to seek parenting counseling. The counsellor will discuss with you the tools that you need to successfully confront your fears, improve your communication, cope with stressful situations, resolve conflicts and successfully parent your child.
*Our Parenting Counselling sessions are eligible for Reimbursement by Group Benefit Plan (Social Worker).
*If there is any situation of potential conflict of interest in working with the clients, a referral will be made for the clients to get support from other appropriate services in the community.