Being a parent is one of the most gratifying, and one of the scariest jobs you will ever have to face in your adult life. Not to mention one of the toughest.
But, what do you do when you find out your little angel is a special needs child or “Spirited Child” for the use of a better term. Finding out this news will most likely bring so many overwhelming emotions and thought; most of which you may not like. The biggest question probably running through your mind right now is; “Was it something I did wrong?”
First of all, you can kick that thought to the curb right now! No one can really predict if their child is going to be a Spirited Child or not; even genetics can’t always predict this. So take a deep breath, and relax! I can promise you, it wasn’t something that YOU did!
Now that we have that out of the way, the easiest way for you to deal with all those emotions is to face those feelings of worry and doubt head on; and remember. You’ve got this! :o)
Yes, raising a spirited child may seem different from that of raising a child that is not. However, you will be relieved to find that there really are more similarities between the two then what meet the eye. I have listed some of the similarities for you below.
1) Do your Research — Whether it was during your pregnancy, or after. As a parent, you’re always looking into things to get more information if you are unsure of something or want to prepare yourself for what’s to come. When raising a spirited child, you may find that you have to do more research to gather more information with respects to the diagnosis itself and how to cope. But how is that much different than what you as a parent have been doing up until this point?
2) Be Patient, & Understanding — All children at any age need their parents to always be patient and understanding. A spirited child just needs you to be that little more patient and understanding towards them as they also learn to better understand themselves and how to verbalize their feelings to you that they currently cannot. Yes, you as the parent are not the only one that has to learn how to deal with the hand you have just been dealt. But your child does too. They don’t know what’s going on with them any better then you do; try and remember that the next time things seem like they are taking the wrong turn and you and your little one butt heads. You will be amazed at how much a little understanding can make such a BIG difference!
3) Take Your Cues From Your Child! — Practically every parenting book you have ever read or will ever read; will typically tell you to take your cues from your child. This is no different with a spirited child. Sometimes, you may find yourself having to look the slightest bit deeper to find out what it is exactly your little one is trying to tell you.
So there you have it! As you can see there may be some obvious differences between a child that is spirited and one that is not. But you will be relived to find that when it comes to the aspects of parenting a spirited child, there are many things that really don’t change. You already know what you’re doing and you may have never even realized it!
Lastly, I would like to leave you with this. Having a Spirited Child, like with anything in life, is going to have its challenges. But, as a parent that can speak from experience. Using the resources in your community and online can be the most helpful. Recently reading an incredible book myself on parenting a special needs child. This book is called “Raising Your Spirited Child” by Mary Sheedy Kuranka, ED. D.; and is a book I would recommend to all parents out there. Raising a child with special needs or not, this book will help strengthen the relationship between you and your little angel in ways you could never imagine. This, I can give you my word, and can promise you that it will help; and once you have a better idea how to deal with all the different struggles of parenting any child. All those scary feelings will go away.
