Stress is the root of all my poor parenting moments. (Hmm, I made a typo: “poop parenting.” Freudian? ;-)

All parents know that kids increase stress. My wife and I never had a single argument in over four years until the kids came along. Then, in our first month with twin infants, the constant demands and sleep-deprivation changed all that fast. Kids require constant problem-solving and can’t be put on hold like other demands. They are always changing and making our previous solutions obsolete. They require oodles of patience as we have to repeat the same lesson over and over and over before they internalize it… But the fact is, we choose to be parents and so we choose the stress. We can’t remove the stress so we must learn how to defuse it.

For me, sleep helps with stress, as does regular exercise and eating right (mostly a low-carb, low-GI diet). Along with these and just as important is staying organized. When I allow enough time for things, I can usually save time with more creative responses to the kids behavior rather than spiraling into a power-struggle. Most of all, I almost never raise my voice with the kids (other than an attention-getting “hey!”) when I’m not stressed.

When I’m not stressed, I explain things better and discipline more appropriately. Most of all, I show the kids more attention and love.

It’s official: stress is the #1 enemy of this parent!