The Parent of a "Difficult" Child

Dear Delyara, My 'Grind' isn't at an office; it’s in my own living room. I have a son who struggles with a rage he can’t control, and every day is a battle to keep the house from exploding. The shadow is the judgment from other parents at school who think I’m just 'too soft.' They don't see the nights I spend crying in the bathroom so he doesn't hear me. They don't see the physical exhaustion of being on high alert for sixteen hours a day. I felt like a failure as a mother, watching my family crumble under the weight of his outbursts. My Victoria didn't come when he was 'cured'—it came the day I stopped trying to hide our struggle and asked for a professional to step in. I had to let go of the pride that said I could do it alone. The victory is that our home is finally a sanctuary again, not a battlefield. We have peace because I had the courage to admit I was drowning.