According to a recent Surgeon General's report, four in 10 parents are so stressed out they
quote unquote can't even function. Well, we're gonna talk about that today on Tips on Teens.
My name is Kent Toussaint. I'm a licensed marriage and family therapist and I specialize in
helping kids, teens, and families and parents live happier lives. If you or someone you care
for could really benefit from talking to a family therapist, please reach out to us at Teen Therapy
Center. Our contact info is in the caption below. Now let's jump in today's not parent -submitted
question. This time it's just us talking about it on Tips on Teens. All right. The dishes aren't
done. The toys aren't getting cleaned up anytime soon. And the money is month to month. You are
stressed out and there's no change in sight. How do you cope? Couple the rigors of the everyday
routine with the additional stresses of parenting in the digital age and you have a lot of parents
feeling isolated, overwhelmed, and alone. According
to the recent Surgeon General's report, four in ten parents are so stressed out they say they
can't even function. Without any obvious source of support for parents, how are parents supposed
to cope? Oh my gosh, you know what I'm talking about. Now I know what you think I'm going to say
here. You're expecting me to say, well let's focus on the self -care and boundaries around your
sleep and eating healthier and exercising blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah.
You know this already. If it was that easy, you'd be doing it already, wouldn't you? It's hard.
Parenting is really hard and for many families, things can be so stressed out. It's the comparison
to other parents. Other families seem like they're doing great. Why am I the only parent who's
struggling, right? This is what I encourage you to do. Don't go through this alone. I'm not giving
you easy advice to follow. But find community. I just did a recent parent workshop for parents
of neurodivergent kids. And there was some
good advice going back and forth. But the big thing that they all talked about is it feels so good
to hear other people talking about things that I relate to. I'm not alone, that other people
have the same struggles I do. Find community, find a handful of other parents so you can meet
with at least once a month over your favorite caffeinated beverage and talk and vent and support
one another. That could start out as like a Facebook group. There's plenty of parent Facebook
groups out there and maybe finding people who are in your area, meeting once a month, maybe it's
through your parent center at your school, maybe it's through having a therapist, maybe there's
a group that you can talk to. But the biggest thing that I find when I'm supporting parents is
they all feel so alone. They feel like they're the only ones going through this. And again, should
you be doing all that self -care stuff? Yes, you should, but it's not always realistic. There's
so many things that we have to do. And the
way I encourage you to look at this is if your kid 20 to 30 years from now is in the same position
you are, what advice would you give them? Would you say, just shoulder on and don't talk to anybody?
Probably not. You'd really encourage them to reach out to you or other people to make sure they
don't feel alone. and you wouldn't want your kid to feel alone going through this. And maybe
if that's good advice for your kid in the future, maybe it's good advice for you too now. So I really
encourage you to reach out and get that support. Could be your own therapist, could be a community,
could be group therapy of other parents, could be an online group, whatever that is, reach out
and make sure that you not only can receive support, but it's also very healing to return, pay
it forward and offer that support to other people. Anyways, that's our tip on teens for today.
Again, my name is Kent Toussaint with Teen Therapy Center and the nonprofit 501c3 organization,
Child and Teen Counseling. If
you would like your question answered here on Tips on Teens, usually we're answering parent
questions, but today was a little different. We're kind of mixing up a little bit, but you can
email us at tipsonteens at teentherapycenter .com or direct message us right here on Facebook.
We love your questions. Thank you so much. Again, this is Kent Toussaint with Teen Therapy Center
and the non -profit Child and Teen Counseling, and we'll see you live on Facebook next Wednesday
noon. Bye -bye.
WHEN “SELF CARE” ISN’T REALISTIC
Parenting is tough, and according to a recent report from the U.S. Surgeon General, 4 in 10 parents feel so overwhelmed by stress that they say they can’t even function. If you’re feeling this way, you’re not alone. But how do you push through it?
You might expect to hear advice about self-care, but we know that carving out time for yourself is often unrealistic. Between work, kids, and everyday responsibilities, self-care can feel like just one more thing on an already overflowing to-do list.
YOU’RE NOT ALONE!
So, if there’s one piece of advice we could give about parental stress, it’s this: You’re not alone. Many parents assume everyone else is managing just fine, while they’re the only ones struggling. But this couldn’t be further from the truth.
REACH OUT
Our best advice? Reach out to other parents. Whether it’s a quick text chat, a phone call, or an in-person meetup once a month, connecting with others who are going through the same thing is crucial. When you talk to other parents, you realize that they, too, are facing similar stress, doubts, and frustrations. You’re not the only one juggling it all.
Even if it’s just once in a while, having that time to vent, relate, and simply talk with other parents can make a huge difference. It’s through shared experiences that you can start to feel more in control and less isolated in your challenges. And once you’ve found that community, if you have time, you can dive into self-care practices like exercise, meditation, or hobbies.
Clinical Director Kent Toussaint answers your parenting questions every Wednesday at 12:00pm in our weekly segment Tips On Teens on Facebook Live. Have questions about parenting kids and teens? Send them to: TipsOnTeens@TeenTherapyCenter.com. We love to hear from you!
Head on over to our Facebook page every Wednesday at 12:00pm to watch LIVE! Check out our page here – https://www.facebook.com/TeenTherapyCenter/
If you have more questions or would like more information, please contact our Clinical Director, Kent Toussaint at 818.697.8555.