Being a parent is amazing and rewarding, from that miraculous feeling of looking into your new baby’s eyes, to the first time your little one tells you they love you. But raising kids can also be incredibly challenging and parents are getting real about that in a new Reddit thread. It asks, “What’s the worst part of having a child?”
More than 18-thousand have responded so far and here’s what they have to say about the hard, painful and frustrating parts of having a kid.
- “The days drag on, but the years fly by.”
- “The constant anxiety that you’re doing enough to shape them to make good choices, a good life, be a good person, and for them to have the life they deserve.”
- “When people ask me this I say: You know those video games where you have to escort a character to a destination without them being attacked. That's parenting. Those missions are a pain in the a*s.”
- “You have to feed them like every day.”
- “Watching them make the same mistakes you did even though you told them not to make those mistakes.”
- “It's incessant. It never stops. You never get a day off. Going from having two days per week to relax and do whatever to literally never having a moment free from responsibility.”
- “I'm only 9 years in, but so far it's been the sleep deprivation. Hands down.”
- “Having to take care of a sick child when you are also sick. For me, that has been the most challenging part so far.”
- “The loss of freedom. I can't just...go somewhere. Even with older kids, there's so much planning and thinking and getting ready. I miss being able to just decide to go somewhere, and go there.”
- “Having to come up with ideas for 3 meals a day + snacks… forever!”
- “For me, I just really like to be alone sometimes. Can’t do that anytime I want to now.”
- “Worrying about how the outside world will treat them.”
- “It's like taking a 2nd job that lasts 18+ years with 24/7 schedule with no holidays or sick days.”
- “Stepping on Legos”
Source: Reddit