Over the weekend, I had a lively exchange on my Facebook page (which has 20,000 Likes, thank you very much!) where a few folks I’ve never met chimed in about my parenting choices. One person claimed that because I use the cry-it-out method, I’ve shattered my child’s trust. Another labeled me as cruel and heartless. It’s baffling how these strangers, who don’t know me or my son, have the audacity to comment on our relationship and my parenting approach without understanding the full picture.
Honestly, I’m not one to get easily offended. But being told by random people that I’m harming my child’s well-being simply because they don’t agree with my sleep-training method? That stung.
Feel free to critique my parenting style. Go ahead and judge me for allowing my kids to indulge in screen time, for having too many toys, for co-sleeping, or even for the occasional colorful language I use when writing about them. I can take it. Some of those critiques might even hold some truth.
But don’t you dare question how much I love my children!
It’s human nature to judge, whether it’s about politics, fashion, music taste, or even who’s the superior superhero. Parenting is no exception, but it gets a bit more intense when kids are involved. After all, they’re our most precious resource.
Each parent has their unique style, just as every child is an individual. There’s no one-size-fits-all guide to raising kids, which is why we often encounter differing approaches. We might wonder why others don’t do things our way—after all, our kids are perfect, right? Why wouldn’t everyone want to replicate our success?
I admit, I can be opinionated. But I strive to respect others’ parenting choices—except when it comes to crucial matters like vaccinations, allergies, and safety. We’re all human and judging is part of life. It’s in our DNA, and while we may try to keep our opinions to ourselves, we still have them, often without knowing the whole story.
What’s truly unacceptable is to judge someone’s intentions. It’s easy to see a parent yelling at their child or ignoring a tantrum and assume they don’t care or love their kids. That’s where we go wrong. The real failure is thinking that someone is intentionally harmful or neglectful. Unless you have solid evidence (much stronger than what you’d find in a low-budget documentary), it’s crucial to assume that every parent is doing what they believe is best for their kids.
Parenting differences stem from a variety of factors—culture, circumstances, and methodologies. But the one undeniable truth that unites us all is the love we have for our children. Everything we do, even if it seems odd or misguided, is rooted in our desire to nurture and protect them.
I might not share a lot in common with your parenting style, but I’m confident in one thing: we both parent out of love. And that’s a connection that should never be doubted.
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Summary
Parenting is a deeply personal journey, and while we all have our unique styles, the one thing that binds us is our love for our children. It’s important to judge methods, but never the intentions behind them.