Striking a balance

Raising your grandchildren requires special coping skills to deal with the undoubted stress that will come along. Finding time for yourself is essential - setting aside even an hour just for you will help you make better decisions and respond in a positive way to stressful situations. One of the best things you can do is reach out for help - through counselling and through a support group. Counselling will help you to "normalize" your often conflicted feelings, and assist you to make the best decisions for yourself. It will also give you a place to really talk about taking on a full-time grandparenting role - and how overwhelming it feels at times. Finding other grandparents in a similar situation - and there are many - will help you to feel less alone, and give you support. You might want to form or join such a group.