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I am writing this in response to a comment from a parenting site that made my blood boil. The person who wrote the offending comment has been dealt with, but I think that a reminder of what Parenting Sites and Communities are really about needs to be given.

I was not the only one who found the comment offensive and not the only one to report it. I felt that the comment also attacked me as a parent for the way I choose to discipline my children (who are finally starting to get the idea of reasoning!).

I will be writing this with my views included. It will not be an attack on other parents or their parenting skills and views. Far from it. I plan to open your eyes to how negative behaviour and comments can impact not only on a persons mental wellbeing but also on their parenting skills.

Every parent deserves to feel as though they are doing a good job of raising the next generation. Let's face it, it is the most difficult, thankless job you can have. As parents we are under paid, stressed and under appreciated. Yet, we still do the best we can for our children and families.

No one has the perfect child or family and we have to raise our children and deal with our situations the best way we can. Everyone lives in different circumstances and raises their children differently. All of us need to be tolerant of other people's skills, views and choices.

Publicly shaming a person for how they decide to discipline their child is not the best way to go. Voicing your opinion or offering other helpful suggestions is a far more positive and effect way of helping someone who is not quite handling things.

Negative and abusive comments can severely affect a persons mental state. They can start to believe what they are hearing and begin to believe they are no good. Their quality of life can go down hill really quickly. They can suffer from depression or even try to take their own life. It is true. It is just the same with children who grow up being told they are useless. They live that way, turn to drugs, become career criminals etc.

Just because the person you are dealing with is an adult doesn't make the negative affects any less dangerous. Parents are already stressed enough and you never know when they are standing on the edge.

Feeling bad about ourselves can affect our parenting skills too. We may be slower to react to dangerous situations. We might be tired all the time. We might cry all the time, or withdraw from society. All these are just some of the affects, but they are pretty

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