I Hit My Child And Feel Guilty! If this sounds like something you’ve recently said, then don’t worry.
In this short article we’ll explain the main reasons why you will always feel some form of guilt after hitting your child and a few spanking alternatives.
Spanking is widely regarded by most of the world’s parents as a regular part of raising children.
Maybe you’ve done it a few times, and it has worked so far, but now you have started feeling some type of way about it.
If you’re like most parents out there who wonder why I hit my child and feel guilty, here’s why it may be happening and how you can move on from that.
I Hit My Child And Feel Guilty
It can be hard to control your child’s frustration when they are acting up and not doing what you want.
Lashing out and hitting them can instantly correct that behavior, but it is likely to leave you feeling guilty.
The most common reason for this is seeing your child crying from the pain you’ve inflicted on them.
You might not also feel too good about losing it in front of them, and what that action can mean for your relationship going forward.
Learn more on how to discipline a 2-year-old
Alternatives to spanking you can try out
Believe it or not, studies have shown that spanking doesn’t work and is counterproductive to your child’s wellbeing and development.
For one, hitting your child shows them that it is okay to do so, and they will follow your example on someone else.
You can also seriously hurt them because of your height and strength differences.
In addition, children rarely forget such a traumatic event, and it can negatively impact your relationship in the future.
As a form of discipline, hitting your child is not the way to go.
Instead, here’s what you can do to get much better results:
- Communicate openly with your child. Let it be clear that you’re disappointed that they are not doing what they are supposed to. You should also give them a chance to say why they are acting like that, or you can try looking at things from their perspective.
- Create clearly established codes of behavior and punishments beforehand. You mustn’t let your child get away with bad behavior. However, hitting should never be your default consequence. Instead, you can involve your child in coming up with appropriate punishments, such as loss of TV time or their phone, so that they are deterred from repeating the mistake next time.
- Reward good behavior whenever possible. To be honest, your child will test your patience limits many times as they grow up with all the bad behavior they get up to. That means that you should appreciate the times they get it right. Something as simple as a sweet or added privilege will reinforce the idea that good behavior will be rewarded, and they’ll do that more often.
Your child should feel like they can still come to you, even when they have done something wrong.
So when you think that I hit my child and feel guilty, remember that this could cause a rift in your long term relationship.
Instead of hitting your child, try other ways of punishing them and getting your point across so that your relationship can blossom.
Iesha is a loving mother of 2 beautiful children. She’s an active parent who enjoys indoor and outdoor adventures with her family. Her mission is to share practical and realistic parenting advice to help the parenting community becoming stronger.
