Member-only story
You Don’t Like Your Kid? Beware.
Chances are good there’s something more going on.
As a parent, you have already experienced many conflicting emotions: love, kindness, protectiveness, frustration, anger, confusion, resentment, happiness, gratitude, pride, sadness, embarrassment, and on and on.
Especially if you had to go the extra mile to become a parent.
Maybe you were older, or infertile, or miscarried frequently, or were pressured by well-meaning friends or family. Maybe you went through IVF or had an abortion in the past or were a foster parent or adopted.
You know what it took to get to this point.
Which is why the feeling of dislike, as socially unacceptable it is for a parent, gets pushed aside, or hidden, or denied. Or laughed away, if it comes up at all.
I’m not talking about just irritation. Or even rage.
I’m talking about when you look at that one child and you just feel nothing. Not just that, but you dislike them actively. You feel guilty about it. You go through the motions, you do the right thing, but you don’t feel connected.
Perhaps you have other children, and they do feel like your kids. You run your hands through their hair or pull them in for a hug.
