Stereotypes vs. Reality for Stay-At-Home Parents

It may sound easy, but a home doesn’t make itself.

When it comes to staying at home to more effectively parent children, there are many passionately held beliefs. Some people see the idea of one parent staying at home as necessary, while others will scoff at those who opt to raise children full time instead of working. There are of course many beliefs in the middle of these two extremes. There has also been a huge shift when it comes to gender, as the number of fathers staying at home rose from 1.1 million in 1989 to more than 2 million in 2012, according to the Pew Research Center. The reasons for stay-at-home parenting have changed as well, as many more people are staying at home because they are unable to find work when compared to the tail end of the 80s. There are also significantly more people who do it simply to care for their family, believe it or not. People are also far less judgmental as to the gender of the one who stays at home to care for the children than they once were.

If you’re a stay-at-home parent, you’ll likely find yourself explaining what you do quite often. You’ll probably also hear plenty of jokes about the “eating bon bons and watching soap operas” type of stereotypes. While many people in today’s economy see staying at home to raise kids as a luxury or the soft option, the reality is that many people do it out of economic necessity. Stay-at-home parents also need to hire babysitters from time to time, and they find themselves with far less time than many strangers would imagine.

Being a stay-at-home parent can also be a lonely experience, and if you’re about to become one you’ll likely start to miss regular, adult conversations. You’ll also need to work harder when it’s time to rejoin the workforce. Employers don’t always see the value and hard work involved with stay-at-home parenting. Regardless, the core message is that staying at home to raise children can take more of a toll than people first consider. If you’re planning on staying at home to raise children, you’re actually getting yourself into a difficult situation, so it’s worth planning it through from the beginning.

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5 years ago
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