With the rise of social media and influencer content and with more accessible research on family life and early childhood development, it’s quite hard to parent in this day and age without getting toxic comments or critiques about your approach. From your own parents and extended family to even strangers who just happen to witness a moment of your parenting, someone will usually have something to say about the way you’re raising your kid.

I’m talking about parent-shaming; the nasty phenomenon of discouraging parents through condescending comments, remarks that unnecessarily mischaracterize the parent, and just generally passing judgment on moms and dads without context or an authentic desire to be supportive. This is, of course, to be differentiated from healthy and well-communicated feedback that comes from a place of love.

At best, the remarks are passive-aggressive, masquerading as “concern”. But others come with an explicit side of vitriol and have no other goal other than to discourage the parent. I find this very sad, as I believe a great way to “raise” healthy, supportive parents is to also be surrounded by healthy, supportive parents.

While I can’t control what the people around me may say, I can certainly control my response. And so this year, I’ll be doing these six things more consistently in the face of parent-shaming. If you find yourself in the same boat, read on and see if these will help!

Continue reading “From Shame to Strength: How to Handle Parent Shaming in 2025”