Please Don't Spank Your Child
BeWell's Alice Domar, Ph.D, explains why we should leave this type of parenting in the past.
Please Don't Spank Your Child
Like many of my generation, I remember being spanked as a child. What was particularly unfair was that the home of my childhood was an upside down house, in that the living space was on the second floor and my bedroom was on the first floor. So when my naughtiness factor overtaxed my mother's patience, she would yell, tell me to go to my room, and then swat my behind as I started going down the stairs. There was no way to obey the go-to-the-room command without getting spanked.
Sometime between my childhood and the time I became a mom, the
attitude about spanking changed. Time-outs were in, and hitting was way
out. I can guess that most of us have slipped a time or two (I can
actually only remember spanking one of my kids once and I still feel
awful about it. I apologize to her every time the topic comes up but
she thinks I am being ridiculous since she was three at the time and
has no memory of the event. But I remember it all too well and feel
really guilty). But new research supports the notion that spanking is
just not an option when it comes to disciplining your child(ren).
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If you read most discipline books, they all tell you the same thing about spanking. A parent relies on spanking when they lose control and don't know what else to use (use your words!). If you spank your kid, you teach him/her that violence is an acceptable way to deal with an uncomfortable situation, so they'll model you and use it on their siblings and playmates. Also, the cycle of spanking is difficult to break and can continue for years, but how do you discipline with a 15-year old teenager who's bigger than you?
There are many, many ways to discipline a child without spanking. Spanking is the easy, but completely ineffective way and can only help you raise a child who has very little respect for his parents (they can't control themselves).
Educate yourself, take classes and find a better way, so you can enjoy a positive lifelong relationship with your children.