Tag Archives: fear

Date Night at a Haunted House is Supposed to Be Fun, Right?

From the time I was allowed to watch them, I’ve always loved horror movies. In my teenage years I was less discriminating and would give almost any of them a shot. These days I don’t watch every single one, and I don’t like ones that are just about guts and gore. There has to be some kind of plot and, preferably, some kind of reason, twist, or mystery associated with the chills. Wayne’s always been a good sport and humored my horror movie loving ways. He’ll go see them with me, even though he doesn’t much like them himself. It … Continue reading →

Doing What You Need to Do (Even When You’re Scared)

I know that feeling immobilized by fear and concern is not the sole plight of a single parent–but, let’s face it, for many of us solo parents, it can take some getting used to taking care of a family on our own. Add to that the reality that we may be going through a messy divorce, facing a funeral, or need to relocated, go back to work or school, etc. and it can be a recipe for feeling fearful and insecure. Acknowledging this insecurity and fear, however, does not mean that we cannot still do what needs to be done… … Continue reading →

Don’t Be Afraid to Impose

One of the hard lessons I have had to learn as a single parent is NOT to try to do everything all by myself. One of the big things that held me back in the early years was that I didn’t want to impose or put “my stuff” onto other people. I assumed that since I had had these children by choice and I should be “in charge” of living my life and running my family, that I had no right to ask anyone for anything. I just didn’t want people to think that I could not handle my situation … Continue reading →

Fighting for Peace

As my family was remembering 9/11 this week, I have been pondering peace and what it means to me in my life, both as an American, and as a mother. I think that for me, peace is freedom from fear. If I had absolute peace of mind, I wouldn’t have to worry about my children going to school and being potential targets of assassins or terrorists. I wouldn’t have to agonize over their health and wonder how disease might negatively affect their lives. I’d never worry that people could bully or take advantage of them. And I’d be free from … Continue reading →

When a Child Has Too Much Exaggerated or Inappropriate Fear

Children experience fear (just as we adults do too) and “being afraid” of all sorts of things is quite common for children. Some children, certainly, are more fearful than others. Still, if a parent taps into his or her intuition, there can be times when a child seems to have “too much” fear—or the fears seem overwhelming, exaggerated or inappropriate. These are times when a parent needs to intervene and try to find out what is really going on. Often times, you will be able to trace the exaggerated fear to something that has happened. When my eldest daughter was … Continue reading →

The Fear of Making Mistakes

Who wants to make mistakes? No one does, of course. Or at least, most of us would rather not have to bumble through or face the consequences of massive errors (or even small errors). But, in reality, the fear of making mistakes can keep us from taking the risks and chances necessary to try new things and build a thriving business. In order to feel free to try new things and come up with innovative ways to do business, we have to first free ourselves from the fear of making mistakes and errors that might be inhibiting us. Of course … Continue reading →

How Old Should Children Be Before They Watch the News?

The television news can be incredibly scary. With the focus being on bad and tragic news and information, children can get exposed to some rather graphic and unpleasant realities long before they are really developmentally old enough to process them. I remember one of my own children having nightmares for nearly a year when she heard a statement on the news that said something like every person in America would experience a house fire in their lifetime. She was horrified that our house would burn any day. So, how old should children be before they watch the news, and what … Continue reading →

Mother’s Day Primary Program

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If your ward is like most, the odds are good that your child (or children) will be singing on Mother’s Day weekend. Some children are comfortable with this, but there are many who are literally terrified by the idea of standing in front of a ward full of people and singing. Here are some steps you can take to help make sure your child is comfortable, enabling you to relax and enjoy their songs of love this Mother’s Day weekend. Start talking to your child now about singing. Remind them that everyone in the ward loves them, and no one … Continue reading →

Does Your Pet Hate Fireworks?

Fireworks, thunderstorms, gunfire. What do they have in common? They can be incredibly terrifying for your pets! My Miko was terrified of thunderstorms. And fireworks. And firecrackers. And any other sharp, sudden noise. He would tremble and try to climb into any lap that was available. Nobody around to sit on? He would belly-crawl all ninety pounds of shepherd-husky mix under my bed and hide. If your pet is afraid of fireworks and thunderstorms, you can try a few different things to help ease his anxiety. Some trainers suggest simply ignoring the behavior. If cuddle your frightened pet or try … Continue reading →

Stuck in Between–When We Have to Wait for Answers

There’s a strange and awful place that we sometimes have to go when we have a child with a developmental delay or chronic illness. It’s like a halfway point between two doorways: The “everything’s going to be alright” doorway, and the “my world and my child’s world is shattered” doorway. And we stand there, in limbo, waiting to see which one will open. The Agony of Waiting We find ourselves in this in-between place when we’re waiting for the doctor to call with results from our child’s blood test or biopsy. Or when we’re waiting to hear the psychiatrist’s analysis, … Continue reading →