Peace at Home Blog

Coronavirus: My new life as a mom

February 26, 2020 | Kathleen Harkins Weissenberger

I have had the blessing of two children who are now young adults at the ages of 15 & 18 and then the added joy of their friends who are welcomed as family. We are a middle-class family, navigating our pursuit of happiness by doing the things we have to do to do the things we want to do. Coronavirus has, well, challenged that road – significantly. But I refuse to let it cause too much negative results.

A little background of how I found myself posting on Peace at Home Parentings blog. I am a woman of many hats: Mom, Wife, Coach, and Graphic/Web/Marketing specialist. Ironically, I met Ruth years ago when my children were young while taking her parenting class. That class falls under one of the top 10 things I have ever done as a parent. Now this was back in the day when you could congregate in person with no fears of community spread of the coronavirus pandemic, but the good news is that this type of class is probably actually better suited online (then you can hide your blushing when you realize perhaps you could have handled that parenting situation better… What I learned most of all was that prevention (usually through good communication) was the key a pretty peaceful household.

Now back to the situation at hand – Coronavirus. My husband, Director of Health (how convenient is that??? or not???), sat me down several days ago and said, “honey, our lives are going to change.” He is not a man of many words, but who knew at the time what he was saying. As the perpetual optimist, I said, “I know, we got this.” We were both right, at least so far.

And so it begins, my story and how I am going to take every life lesson I have learned as a parent and human being and apply it to address our new current norm, which is anything but normal.

Step 1: Take a deep breathe and hug yourself. As a mom, if you aren’t in a good place, your kids know. Ruth once said, it is ok to lock yourself in the bathroom for a few minutes to gather yourself. The first time I did that, it wasn’t to hug myself, but it did prevent carnage in the family communication system. Bottom-line, it works! Take some time for yourself and tactically find a happy place and get ready to spread it when you walk out that door.

Step 2: We are going to get through this. Yes it is going to be hard, but we are still dealing with a tough situation, but together we can behave in ways that the sacrifice can be short if we are smart, listen to the experts, ration our resources, and not panic. I recommend private coaching if you are feeling yourself unravel.

Step 3: If you have never experienced counseling, consider finding an outlet. Just as your car needs an oil change and a check up, sometimes resetting your mind is all you need to keep running well. Be pro-active, learn tactics before you need them. Take a FREE course from Peace at Home Parenting or take our full online Udemy class on 5-Steps to Positive Parenting

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