Parenting | The Irish Times

The Sean Ross Abbey in Roscrea, Co Tipperary was mother and baby home operated by the Sisters of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary from 1930 to 1970. Photograph: Niall Carson/PA Wire

Maureen Gaffney: The land of the mother and baby homes

The Mother and Baby Homes report triggers a wash of memories of those grey decades

Normal anxiety is intermittent and context specific, whereas problematic anxiety is pervasive, constant and impacts on all aspects of the person’s day-to-day life. Photograph: Getty

Joanna Fortune: ‘Don’t minimise or try to fix a child’s anxiety. It doesn’t work’

Anxiety is so pervasive among teenagers that adolescence can become an age of anxiety

Children aged two to 18 should be doing 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity every day. Photograph: iStock

Eat, move, think: What you need to know about children’s health (9-12 years)

The second in a four-part series looking at nutrition, activity and mental wellbeing

Do you feel that you and the school are better prepared this time compared to last spring?

Back to homeschooling: Are you pleasantly surprised or feeling left in the lurch?

Have your say: The Irish Times would like to hear about your experiences so far

Children

Focusing on the shyness can inadvertently make a child think something might be wrong with them. Photograph: iStockphoto

How to encourage your child’s potential . . . from toddler to teen

Saying ‘don’t be shy’ or ‘has the cat got your tongue?’ can increase his anxiety

Teenagers

For teenagers, bereavement can be particularly difficult to come to terms with. Photograph: iStockphoto

Ask the expert: Our daughter is struggling since the death of a classmate

She is struggling to get a proper night’s sleep and is very anxious before going to bed

Toddlers

Sleep training requires a lot of patience and does not yield immediate results. Photograph: Thinkstock

Ask the expert: How do we get a toddler to sleep all night?

If you have a parenting query, send your question to health@irishtimes.com

Babies

Pixie McKenna: ‘In an ideal world, if you can cook something, great. It’s cheaper, it’s more convenient, you can batch-cook and, ultimately, as you go through the stages, you can all eat the same thing, which is really important.’

Pixie McKenna on weaning: ‘I hadn’t a clue’

‘Dr Pixie’s First Foods’ examines weaning and babies’ first food recipes . . . sugar included

Relationships

As one of my boys is 12 and prepubescent, I’m concerned about telling him about his dad before he has established his own sexual identity. Photograph: Thinkstock

Ask the Expert: How do I tell my sons their father is bisexual?

John Sharry helps solve your parenting problems. Send your queries to health@irishtimes.com

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10 Maureen Gaffney: The land of the mother and baby homes

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