Reading this thread made me cry but I'm so glad that I found it. I share so many of these same concerns. I try so very hard but there are so many days where I really can only manage to provide my daughter with the basics. So many days I'm not the mom that I want to be but the thing that worries me most is not wanting to make my daughter sad or confuse her in any way. And I certainly don't want to create any lasting emotional issues for her. She is 3 1/2-years-old, but a VERY smart, intuitive and articulate three-year-old. She is the poster child for precociousness.

I'll definitely take a few tips from this thread and use them with my daughter. Thanks for helping me to not feel so alone. Somehow feeling not so alone in this situation makes me think that I have been too hard on myself and perhaps I'm not messing things up between my daughter and I as badly as I've thought.

See, this is why I'm here=== you get it and I get I'm not alone. We have been going through this with my son. He was 4 when I was hospitalized (mommy was helping a sick friend) and now he's 6 and showing some behavior that worries us...tantrums, isolation, talking back, immediate anger, etc. I KNOW deep down much of it is being a kid but we've also noticed attacks similar to anxiety. Sick to his stomach, complaining about not feeling well, begging to go home. We've made an appt to see a child psychologist (because I need ANOTHER therapist in my life) for next week. My husband and I have no idea how to talk to him about this. I've told him that mommy sees a dr to help me be a better mom but that's about it. He knows I don't sleep and often spend a lot of time alone on the deck. I have to let go and just wait and see what the dr says but boy o boy do I understand!!! The one thing I keep telling myself is that I am a better mom by just getting help. I'm doing this to break the cycle of bullshit I was raised with so he can have a better life...a healthier life. Same goes for you!