The Virtual Village - a space for parenting 'stuff'

[saltandpepper]

Hi @Shaz51 sorry I must have missed the notification here. Thanks for the welcome and I hope you are well 🙂

[saltandpepper]

Hi all 👋 I'm relatively new to the forums and very grateful to find a parenting thread, hope to chat with you all here soon.

I wonder if we can talk about the hurdle of enrolling our kids in school. My son is 3 and we will need to start thinking about all this soon. It has been in the back of my mind but I find it very difficult to think about. I really struggle with the fact that I won't be able to protect him. I have, issues, I suppose is the word, my own issues from my own experiences as a child. And it makes my skin crawl knowing my son is going to be out of my sight, with other adults.

Has anyone else been through this?

i obviously need to find a way to focus on enrolling him into School and everything, but it's so bloody painful to think of him being out of my care. What if something happens to him? What if I don't know? I can't stand it. It hurts to think about. It terrifies me to think of him being vulnerable and at the mercy of strangers. I want my son to be aware and understand the danger of predators, but I also don't want my own anxieties and issues to spill over and cause him to be terrified as well. I feel like being hyper vigilant has (while at times been a nuisance) quite honestly saved my skin a few times in life. But I know I am overprotective and I know I feel differently about things than my partner does. Example, my son received a personalised bag as a gift recently, and I was pretty horrified. I stuffed it in the back of my wardrobe and told my partner he's not using it. They agreed it's not smart having your kids name plastered all over their stuff, but also said it's not something they'd have thought of if I hadn't pointed it out.

Anyway, sorry for the long thread hogging post. I also wasn't sure if it's ok to just post this here, apologies if it's in the wrong place. Just wanted to hear from other parents who have been or are going through this as well.

cheers all.

[Blep]

It haa been very hard @CheerBear. I wish I could have the support physically but can not at the moment. My little man is also not sleeping well because of a leap which then in turn makes me sleep deprived 😩

[Blep]

Hello @Faith-and-Hope. How are you today?

[Shaz51]

hello and how is everyone today @Blep , @saltandpepper , @HakunaKhunz 

@CheerBear, @Faith-and-Hope 

[Blep]

I'm very tired today @Shaz51. My little man was up at 5am and I couldn't get him back to sleep. I ended up having a nap when my husband woke up but I'm still feeling wrecked.

How are you today?

[Shaz51]

ohhh @Blep , try to sleep when your little man is sleeping 

keep on keeping on my awesome friend xoxo

[Faith-and-Hope]

I am having an okay day today @Blep ..... getting things done and trying not to think about things that are Beto d my control.

My changed circumstances, from the end of last year, have made my situation a greater isolation experience than it was before, and now I am selfi-isolating around my high-risk daughter.  We moved interstate a couple of years back, and it meant leaving my supportive friendship circle on the other side of the country, necessarily for the welfare of two of our five children ..... 

Taking one day at a time, and choosing to think of this as a "calming oasis" in the chaos of my life.

[CheerBear]

Sorry it's been so hard @Blep. Lack of sleep can make things so much harder too 🙁 I know it isn't the same as having people around to help in a practical way, but do you have people (friends/family etc) you are connecting with at the moment?

Hi @saltandpepper. Your post is definitely not a 'thread hogging' post and it's so OK to post here 🙂. It's such a big transition when little ones start school and it can be really scary and stressful, especially when you're used to be so close and able to keep watch over them. I have struggled to balance my anxiety and my want/need to be protective of my kids (which has served a really helpful purpose at times) with my need to let go. It's tough! How long do you have to until he starts?

[Faith-and-Hope]

@Blep ...... I forgot to state "the obvious", but it's not actually obvious at first.  The connections we make with others here on the forums help us to feel not so alone in our individual situations.  Just having others say to you, "I hear you !",  and "I've been there !", and, "I know what that feels like, it happened to me too", is an incredibly validating thing.  Here we are walking along with each other, hearing what there is a need to say, sharing what there is a need to share, feeling with empathy the struggles of others on the road, or sometimes just sitting with someone so they have support in the moments of real struggle.

While my life outside the forums really sucks in a lot of ways at the moment, this is a space that helps us draw on our inner strengths, or find some if the dial is really low.

It's good to meet you.

Hi @CheerBear @saltandpepper @Shaz51 @HakunaKhunz  and anyone else around.