Beating the blues: Depression in young mothers
Dr. Miriam Adahan
Discipline – For the good of the child
Dr. Miriam Adahan
Children misbehave only because they do not know they are holy! Strict limits makes them feel secure. BASIC RULES: 1. SCOLD QUICKLY - no more than a minute. Attack the behavior, not the child. 2. FOCUS ON SOLUTIONS. Be specific, “That (state specifically what it is) is unacceptable.” 4. END WITH HUG: “I love you and trust you.
A major problem which is talked about in whispers but often not sufficiently acknowledged, is depression in young mothers.
Once in a while, I mention in my parenting classes a case of a client who is suffering the effects of a sadistic or neglectful mother. Inevitably, a look of astonishment will appear on the face of one of the group members, and she will ask with incredulity, “That’s not possible! Don’t all mothers love their children? Isn’t it an instinct to love one’s own child?”
I have three different aerobics instructors who are all disciplined, determined and demanding, a fact which I find very inspiring. Beauty and brains are gifts from G-d, so we are merely praising the Creator when we comment on either trait.
DON’T ALL MOTHERS LOVE THEIR CHILDREN?
Dr. Miriam Adahan
Living in 3-d: Disciplined, Determined and Demanding
Dr. Miriam Adahan
Parenting:
From the time a child is born, a parent worries: is he eating enough/too much? growing fast enough? turning over on time? sleeping enough/too much?
WHEN WORRY IS TOXIC
Dr. Miriam Adahan
Almost daily, I receive phone calls or letters from desperate parents whose children have decided to leave the path of Yiddishkeit. I understand their pain. I’ve been there. When one of my children showed signs of rebellion, I struggled with all the feelings which parents in such situations know so well: fear, shame, guilt and anger, but especially deep grief.
Off the path
Dr. Miriam Adahan
When Shira (no real names are used) called me, I asked about the banging and shouting I heard in the background. “I told my 20-year old that I had an appointment and couldn’t give him the car,” she said, “and he came after me so angrily that I raced into my bedroom and locked the door.
UNDERSTANDING TEENAGE TRAUMAS
Dr. Miriam Adahan