Parenting Stress: Causes and Consequences

Devoted to the responsibilities of parenting can be psychologically demanding.

Raising and educating a child is a unique experience, but at times it can be a source of stress for parents.

In this article we will try to analyze the main ways in which child rearing can lead to increased stress for the parents, as well as the main effects that can occur when raising children.The main effects that are derived from this fact and that can affect to different levels.

What do we mean by parenting stress?

When we think about the stress for the labors of raising the children, in fact we are speaking of a very general phenomenon that occurs in many families with children.. Taking care of a child is such a broad concept and covers so many situations that it is necessary to analyze this activity in depth in order to separate some of its main components.

In this way, we will be able to better understand the different ways in which parenting stress may be appearing, since they can be very different, although the final repercussions for the adult who suffers them are similar. Below we will see some of these factors, although this does not mean that they are the only ones that exist.

Likewise, it is important to understand that, like so many things in life, the experience of raising a child can be very different, the experience of raising a child is totally personal and different in each case.Therefore, there will be parents who identify with several of these factors, others who identify with all of them, and even some who do not agree with any of them, and who have never felt stress from parenting.

Causes of stress due to parenting responsibilities

With these previous considerations in mind, we can now go on to list those factors that may be causing or fueling parenting stress.

Lack of sleep

The first factor we can analyze is lack of sleep. This variable occurs especially during the first stage of parenting, that is, when the child is still a baby and, because of its physiological needs, demands attention repeatedly, regardless of whether it is day or night..

This is completely normal, as is the fact that this creates difficulties for parents to get all the sleep they need, who must naturally take care of their child, even if it means waking up several times during the night to breastfeed or bottle feed, or to meet any other need they may have at the time.

Of course, a bad night's sleep may not be a problem for anyone, but when it happens repeatedly, it can be a problem. when it happens repeatedly, it can be a source of parenting stress.. If the baby is exclusively breastfed, the problem of lack of sleep will primarily affect the mother, unless milk is expressed beforehand so that the father can bottle feed the baby.

This is a system that many couples resort to in order to somehow share shifts or even whole nights, so that the effort is shared and therefore the fatigue and rest is also shared.

2. Economic uncertainty

Continuing with the ways in which stress can appear due to the work of raising children, we should not ignore the economic part, we should not forget the economic part of parenthood.. Going through a period of crisis or job instability, or another situation that puts at risk the acquisition of economic resources, is a common source of concern for many people.

When this situation occurs and the person himself is the only one affected, the stress will be less than if it affects him and his partner, and even less than if there are children in the relationship, who are totally dependent on the acquisition of resources. Therefore, the fact of experiencing economic difficulties, together with the factor of having children to take care of, may be favoring an increase in parental distress.

This form of stress may even appear as an anticipation, during pregnancy, as a worry about future situations and expenses, which are not yet taking place.

3. Time management

Time, or rather the lack of it, is one way in which parenting stress arrives. It is obvious that taking care of a child requires a complete involvement and an investment of all kinds of resources, time being one of the most important.time being one of the main ones. Parents soon find that, faced with all the new tasks involved in caring for a baby, the day seems to have fewer hours than before.

As a result, they are forced to give up some of their previous activities, or else to try to do in less time some routines for which they were not so limited before. The process of adjusting to the new way of life is also important in this matter, and after a period of more difficulties, many parents see how this form of parenting stress is reduced.

4. Difficulties in parenting

We emphasized at the beginning of the article that every situation is unique, so that very specific very specific events can occur that can cause additional difficulties in parenting, either because of the child's own personality or because of the child's own stressful situation.The parenting difficulties may be due to the personality of the parents or the child, the educational style, the form of attachment developed or any other factor that may be generating some kind of imbalance.

In this sense, there will be parents who have more basic emotional management tools, or children who are calmer than others and therefore are less likely to generate additional concern to their parents for various reasons. When these and other factors are out of balance, we could be looking at another way in which parenting stress can arise.

5. Health problems

Although in general, the illnesses that children tend to suffer from are frequent but of a minor nature (colds, conjunctivitis, etc.) and therefore their health is not excessively compromised, it is still a source of concern for parents, who obviously do not want to see their children suffer, even if it is due to a minor ailment.

This anguish is especially pronounced in new parentsThis anxiety is especially pronounced in new parents, who due to their lack of experience and information may have a greater tendency to worry about any situation that escapes what they consider normal, such as a slight increase in temperature, which could be interpreted as a fever when it does not necessarily have to be.

The health of children is a priority for parents, so it is not surprising that the concern that arises from this issue can increase the level of stress in them.

Consequences of Parenting Stress

In the previous point we have reviewed some of the possible causes that could be favoring the appearance or increase of parenting stress. We will now pause for a moment to analyze some of the effects some of the effects that this issue may have on fathers and mothers..

As we pointed out earlier, these effects are not the only possible ones, nor do they necessarily appear in all cases.

1. Irritability

It is logical to think that a parent, like any other person, who is under constant stress, may see his or her irritability increase. In this case, these individuals will find it easier to become angry than in other circumstances when they are more relaxed..

The negative side of this effect is that it can have an indirect effect on the children themselves, for example by having less patience with them in certain situations.

2. Anxious and depressive symptomatology

The stress of parenting is completely normal. The problem arises when, due to the specific circumstances of the case, this stress is greater than the person can bear, and is maintained over time.and is sustained over time. That is when additional difficulties may arise, such as anxious and/or depressive symptoms.

As in any other situation in life in which the person is overwhelmed, the most advisable thing to do is to look for ways to achieve the tools to manage the emotions that are lacking and that are needed at that moment. One of the ways to do it is thanks to the help of a professional psychologist.

3. Couple conflicts

The last of the effects of parenting stress that we are going to mention in this list is the hypothetical couple conflicts that may appear. Two people under continuous stress, even if they have a great relationship, may see some friction between them..

Logically, the more solid the relationship is and the better the communication between them, the more likely it is that such incidents will be solved without major problems and that they will be learned from them so that they do not appear again in the future.