10 Minute Parental Stress Test

The other day I was talking to my sister who recently just had her seventh child. As I was holding her precious new baby I asked her, ” Is it any easier with the seventh?” Her reply was, “I am spread pretty thin.” With kids ranging from 16 to newborn, she stays pretty busy.

As a parent we have a lot on our plates. It’s easy to get very stressed. In fact for most of us, stress is a part of everyday life. So we thought we would share this parental stress test designed to help you recognize where your stress is coming from.

Once you have figured that out, then you can create a plan and come up with solutions to help reduce your stress levels. 🙂 My sister also told me that her kids are not doing many of the things they were previously doing. She recognized that running kids to and fro was causing her stress, so she removed/decreased that part of her life to help her stay in control and focus on what was more important for her family.

I must give credit where it is due because I did not come up with this parental stress test, it is from a book called, “I Didn’t Plan To Be A Witch” by Linda Eyre. Linda and her husband Richard are speakers on parenting and families and the authors of numerous other books. Check out their site www.TheEyres.com to see other books and programs the have created.

Here Is How It Works

Judge the stress each item causes you on a scale from zero to ten: Zero being no stress and ten representing the highest stress. There will be spaces provided to add own stress causing items if you don’t find them on the list.

Stress Test

1. Sleep (not getting enough and its effect on your performance)
2. Exercise (lack of it or guilt feelings because you know you should)
3. Diet (guilt fellings because of your weight or irritability because you’re dieting)
4. Pregnancy (hormones and health problems because you are or guilt feeling or frustration because you’re not)
5. Nursing a baby (schedule restraints or having not enough or too much milk)
6. Number of children (count on point for each child – preschoolers and teenagerscount double. This score may add up to more than 10.)
7. Working outside the ome (guilt feelins for leaving or time and emotionaldemands because of)
8. Relationship with husband (personality and/or sexual incompatibility)
9. Church involvment (feelings of not doing enough or doing too much)
10. PTA or school involvement (feelings of not doing enough or doing too much)
11. Scoial engagements (job-related commitments or too few or too many angagements)
12. Financial needs (disagreement with husband over worries, frustrationsm and difficulties with)
13. Time (not having enough time or frustration in managing time)
14. Size of house (too small – no place to andthing or too large – taking too mouch time to keep up)
15. Guests in home ( frequency of and entertaing, food preparation, house preparation)
16. Lessons (from soccer to piano – count double points for lessons that require your help during the week, i.e., sitting with beginners for practice)
17. Car pools (to and from school, lessons, church, activites, field trips)
18. Homework and children’s grades (too much help requires from you or feelings that you don’t help enough or pressure to produce good students)
19. Parents and parents-in-law ( health problems or difficulet relationship with)
20. Sibling rivalry (referee tactics inadequate or emotional wear and tear because of)
21. Family responsibility (single-parent stress, martyr syndrome, or nee to teach children to help)
22. Order (amount of clutter or lack of cooperation to control)
23. Obedience (struggle with the balance between control and free agency)
24. Babysitting (frustration over finding one, using one too often, or not being able to afford one)
25. Cooking (meal preparation or concern over nutrition and variety)
26. Laundry (amount of or inability to find matched socks)
27. Tone of voice (household often angry or you are stressed and up-tight)
28. Health (general well-bing, health problems, depression or fear of disease)
29. Children’s friends (or concern about child’s child’s lack of friends)
30. Cleaning (lack of help with or ability to accomplish)
31. Change (a recent move or new job or feeling the need to change behavior)
32. Shopping (confusion of shopping for groceries with preschoolers or not having time or money or good judgment to get what you need)
33. Monthly periods (accompanying emotional ups and downs, as well as actually felling ill)
34. Car and appliance break-downs (frequency of or inconvenience and cost of)
35. Teenagers (dating, driving, or defiance)
36. Lack of creative outlets (not having time to do your own thing or feeling the martyr syndrome, etc.)
37. Conflicts with a boss or people at work (intensity of or frequency of)
38. Husband’s/wife’s job (time demands or lack of promotion, etc.)
39. Friends and neighbors (conflicts with or lack of involvement with)
40. Arguments (with husband/wife and/or children or other family members)

Now What

Now that you are done, go over your answers. What is bringing you stress, is there a pattern? Now that you can recognize where your stress is coming from, now you can take control and better handle the things that are thrown your way.

Related Posts:

Embrace The Kids – Make Them Be The Reason… Not the excuse

What To Do When Your Kids Aren’t Listening

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