To the parents who are struggling right now…

As we near the end of the year, with the holiday season in full swing, things may feel extra heavy.

I’M HERE TO TELL YOU… THIS CAN BE HERE TOO.

The truth is, parenting is HARD. And if you’re anything like me, right now parenting (life-ing in general?) is feeling EXTRA hard. Maybe you’re feeling the pressure to create the perfect, memorable, picturesque moments for your little ones (anyone else find themselves in the comparison trap right now?). Or you have a to-do list that is as long as your arm. Perhaps the holidays bring up painful memories. You might be experiencing financial strain that is making EVERYTHING harder. Maybe you’ve lost someone this year, and grief is visiting. Perhaps you are watching the devastating loss of life in Palestine and Israel and it’s all just feeling like too much. Or, perhaps like me, it’s a combination of many of these things.

If you find yourself feeling less than jolly right now, IT MAKES SENSE. I promise there’s nothing wrong with you. In fact, I’d argue there’s so much RIGHT with you. You’re in touch with your humanity and are recognizing how heavy things feel, and that’s a beautiful thing.

But it can be hard to find spaces to share this, where the hard stuff is normalized and welcomed (and not judged!).

If you’re looking for a space to allow the hard stuff - grief, guilt, shame, rage, despair, worry, exhaustion, you’ve found the right place. Join me, Dr. Chrissy Chard, for an intimate, virtual gathering where we will put down the societal expectation to be happy, and allow whatever is present in us to exist.

It feels heavy enough as is, without adding on the feeling of being alone in it.