I was hoping that with the recommencement of the school year my daughter would finally settle down. Unfortunately, because of the upheaval in her school life – new class, new teachers, new room etc – she has decided to be a little angel there, and take out all her frustrations on us when she gets out. I know all the psychology behind this. I know that she is masking there, and releasing her pent up emotions in her safe place with safe people. But honestly, that doesn’t make it any easier when, for the tenth time, you tell her to pick up her socks and she throws them at you; or she is crawling in the display racking at the gym because you told her to put her shoes on.
There is a very fine line between ‘I’m raising a strong independent woman’ to ‘I’m raising a delinquent who is going to end up in prison’. She has been no less than feral when I have collected her from school. She has refused to do anything without fights and tantrums. I am exhausted from it. My husband is tired from it, and she really doesn’t even know why she is doing it. Which tends to make her even more frustrated. Trying to do anything with her after school – even something she wants to do e.g. like tennis or swimming – will have her in tears and launching a sit down protest.
The sooner she settles into her new school year, the better. If she doesn’t, I’m going to need more antidepressants and time in a room with padded walls. We’re holding on, just, but a lot of the consequences we could put in are more of a punishment for us than her so I’m desperate for her behavior to improve. After all, if I take her out of her sport classes or activities, it’s me who will be looking after a very sulky fae child. She will just scream at me.
So, all in all, here’s to the settling of routine, and – hopefully – taking the damn mask off!
Raising the Modern Fae 