Caring for an anxious child is one of those situations that can make everyone a sudden expert on raising a kid they are not even parenting. Your mother-in-law may offer 10 different ways to go about bedtime while your father-in-law might think it OK to watch scary movies. Your brother-in-law could go as far as finding it hilarious that your child’s fear of clowns makes her howl with terror when he dons a Bozo mask.
Rather than flying off the handle, or making your anxious child a central feature in any in-law dispute, Psychology Today offers several tips for keeping your in-law relations, and your marriage, on a more even keel.
In addition to keeping your anxious kid out of the middle of arguments and hassles, other suggestions tell us to:
- Accept the in-laws are part of the family
- Learn to adjust to their behaviors without surrendering to things in which you do not believe (i.e. scary movies and clown masks)
- Beware of hurting feelings, especially unintentionally
- Respect boundaries and differences
- Learn to compromise when necessary
Read more details on each suggestion by checking out the article. And good luck!
Full article: http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-couch/201212/take-my-mother-in-law-6-steps-good-in-law-relationships
