PDA Parenting

Yesterday was a pretty bleak day until I got some very uplifting news – when I actually needed it the most!

My eldest with PDA had not coped well at school and half an hour into the day she needed picking up.

She has been absolutely obsessed with a new puppy that we got on Thursday (quick update here) and so now she lives and breathes every minute for her beloved dog.

She had been shouting about getting home to her puppy before entering a period which can only be described as mass destruction.

I don’t know why Kim Jong-un bothers making nuclear weapons, he should just borrow my daughter for a day or two.

The feelings of frustration and desperation have come slowly creeping back and I often question how far we have come as I daily anticipate a phone call.

One of the things that I find hardest to cope with is that my daughter is often so challenging for others that the pressure then sits all on my shoulders.

Always caring and supervising for her, I am left exhausted, just wanting a moment to breathe.

It’s also hard to psychologically get past the fact that most people who come into your child’s life just find them testing.

I always wish they could see the real girl and sadly that is just out of my control.

As each person carries on about their business, we are left to just pretty much get on with it.  Little thought goes into when the ‘problem’ goes away, it’s not in fact gone but just ‘forgotten’ behind closed doors.

The ramifications when things fail can be extremely explosive and it leaves me, as a parent, completely isolated.

Yesterday, I felt angry at the world until I had cried it all out.

I had thought about running to get away from it all but even that I couldn’t do, and the powerlessness of it all made me just cry some more.

So when this news broke it took a few hours to actually process the feeling of achievement it brought about and even then I wasn’t in the right frame of mind to enjoy it.

I have to admit, reluctantly, that a few glasses of wine later the stress of the day slowly ebbed away 🤦‍♀️ and I had a little solo party!

Perhaps, not a great way of self-help, but it did the job nevertheless.

So, a while ago I wrote about the BritMums awards coming up – they are called the BiBs which stands for Brilliance in Blogging.

There are eleven categories, made up of eight finalists in each, which aim to highlight the best of lifestyle, blogging and social medias by Parent Influencers.

It was announced yesterday that PDA Parenting made it as a finalist in the category for Fresh Voice!

And a great big Brucey Bonus is that another PDA blog has made it to the finals too!  My lovely friend, and fellow blogger Steph Curtis, has made it into the Reader’s Choice for her fantastic blog Steph’s Two Girls.

We both have a common goal in that we want to support other families as well as getting PDA widely recognised.

If anyone reading this would like to vote for either (or preferably both!) of the blogs, we would be so incredibly grateful – the link can be found here.

It only takes a few moments to do but will help us to get PDA talked about in the mainstream parenting arena.

Also, if you want to make us EXTRA happy, then please do click on one of the sharing buttons and ask your friends and family to do it too! 😉😍

There are so many children and adults out there with a lack of understanding – Pathological Demand Avoidance needs to be widely talked about so that we can improve this situation.

Let’s see if we can get PDA recognised by winning in one of the categories at the BiBs 2018! 💪🤞

Thank you all so much for nominating us and to the great team at BritMums for giving us the opportunity to be recognised for the work we have done so far.

I am truly indebted to each and every one who reads and supports this blog.

Thank you and much love,

Danielle x