The Perfect Mother Quest ............. By Katarina Wallentin
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Asthma & Allergy management Food intolerance Psychological and Behavioral assessment Childhood and travel vaccine Health check for newborns, infants and 4 y/o kids • Occupational therapy • Dental check up • Skin Cancer Screening (Bulk Billing for children younger than 16) • Sport medicine Working 7 days a week from 8:00am till 10:00pm even public holidays
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hen my daughter was brand new in this world, small, red, wrinkly and (of course) the most beautiful baby ever, I looked into her eyes and melted. In that moment I decided that nothing bad would ever happen to her. I would be the perfect parent, come rain or shine.
And I tried really, really hard to achieve this goal. I read every parenting book I could find, tried baby yoga and baby swimming… and always worried if I was doing the right thing. I stayed in constant judgement of myself to make sure I didn’t miss a beat in my quest to be the perfect mother. Then one night, I was trying to teach my daughter to sleep by using some kind of scream-a-certain-number-of-minutes technique that someone recommended. It was horrible! She screamed and screamed and screamed and I sat on the sofa and ignored her until the “right” number of minutes had passed. I went in quickly and left again. She kept screaming – with that tone of being completely lost and left alone, that breaks one’s heart. And I still didn’t go in until the “right” number of minutes had past – even though my whole being wanted, desired and demanded to. I will never forget that evening. My heart kept breaking, my daughter kept screaming... Then finally, I went in and she had thrown up in her bed from screaming. At that point something inside the very core of me said ENOUGH! This quest ends now. Enough of listening to other people. Enough of trying to get it “right”. Enough of not following my knowing. That evening I chose something different. I chose to start following what I knew -- and asked questions about what would work for me and my daughter. This was my first step towards conscious parenting – parenting based on including everything and judging nothing.
03 5911 7014
319 Main Street, Mornington www.elitemedicalgroup.com.au 28
Peninsula Kids – Winter 2018
So how does one do that? Well – there is no right and perfect way to parent consciously. That is the whole point! Conscious parenting is about what you know and what you would like to create with your child or children. It is an ongoing exploration and adventure. Here are three easy ways to start: