Stepmom Sanity Savers: 4 Secret Moves to a More Empowered You by Iishana Artra, PhD
A hallmark of sanity is possessing good judgment when faced with real life circumstances. As renowned expert Patricia L. Papernow, PhD, says, in stepfamilies, “What works is not intuitive.” In other words, good judgment here is largely a matter of stopping ourselves from stepparenting by reflex.
Seven years, according to Papernow, is the average time it takes to get the hang of stepfamily life. If we’re lucky? Four years. For some, surviving the learning curve is like climbing a 3,000-foot cliff in the rain, in winter, without shoes on and while dodging falling rocks. One sudden move could lead to all sorts of ruin. (That’s how I felt the first time I gave it a whirl.)
A sane stepmom, like a pro rock climber, relies on a strong inner core and control over her movements to trek a safe path. That’s how one million out of every three million stepfamilies make it: They turn pro, employing sound strategy to scale that cliff face.
Will a revised strategy work for you? Put these power moves to the test and find out! …To read the rest of this article log in to your account and download the April 2016 issue. Don’t have an account? Click here to subscribe.