There's a new trend at children's birthday parties these days. Some parents are banning balloons. Not because they're a potential choking hazard. And not because kids inhale the helium. And not even because balloons are really bad for the environment. These parents are nixing balloons to save the children from the disappointment of having one pop or fly away. Trying to eliminate all grief or Prime Boosts Pills trauma before it has a chance to happen - or smoothing what lies ahead to keep children from facing discomfort even in things as insignificant as a popped balloon - is what's become known as lawnmower parenting. And while it may seem like saving kids from heartbreak is a kinder way to parent, removing obstacles before they face them does kids a huge disservice, says parenting expert Dr. Deborah Gilboa. I returned to secondary education about five years ago and have since encountered a higher rate of helicopter parents and a significant number of lawnmower parents," says Atlanta-based Dr. Greg Brooking, who started teaching and coaching high school in the mid-1990s. "I've had mothers and fathers approach me with athletic 'concerns' as well as academic ones.

I've also noticed how today's parents seem to be incapable of assigning any responsibility to their children and are unable to grasp that their kids don't, by nature, deserve to be in the starting lineup. Some schools have taken notice and have become "more focused on growth," and initial grades on early assessments can be adjusted based on the student's consistent improvement throughout the course, says Elizabeth Clark, an Atlanta-based high school teacher with more than 20 years of experience. However, she says she's also had to encourage parents to let their children take responsibility if they don't take initiative and improve, too. When a child has opportunities for improvement and does not act on them, the child needs to feel the pain of the consequences so that they will not make the same choices again. This cannot happen if the parent fixes the problem or the teacher simply bolsters a grade. If failure is an important lesson, lawnmower parenting mistakenly views uncomfortable situations as harmful.

Gilboa says. Parents have become terrified by stress and allowed kids to believe stress is always bad. However, Gilboa explains that stress is to resilience as exercise is to muscle. Facing and managing it is the only way to become resilient. If children don't have chances to Learn more coping skills, we will have adults who have to be really countercultural just to grow. What's a Parent to Do? Parents can begin by recognizing the difference between uncomfortable and unsafe. When a problem won't lead to permanent, scarring damage, allow their child to solve the problem on their own. For lawnmower parents of older children, it's not too late to pivot, says Gilboa. Explain to your child that you're doing things differently going forward. To bring the kids on board, she recommends telling them you've been treating them as too young; most kids are horrified at the thought of being babied.

But if your child's world is full of lawnmower parents - and you're not and let your child (gasp) have balloons at his party or get cut from the soccer team's starting lineup - how will they compete with the children whose parents continue to mow down their way? Gilboa says that if the goal is to get your child into a great college, it's tough. However, if your goal is to see your child graduate from college, the children of lawnmower parents won't have the edge over yours in the end. Because whether it's too much sauce in the college cafeteria, or a popped birthday balloon, our kids need to encounter life's little difficulties to prepare them to tackle the big ones as adults. In March 2019, The New York Times conducted a survey of 1,508 people ages 18 to 28 and 1,136 parents of people age 18 to 28. The survey found that 76 of parents reminded their adult children of deadlines; 74 percent of parents still made appointments for their adult children, including doctor’s appointments; 16 percent helped write all or part of a job or internship application; 15 percent called or texted to make sure their child didn't sleep through a class or test; 11 percent admitted they would contact their child's employer if there was an issue at work; and testosterone support finally, 8 percent said they had contacted their child's professor Prime Boosts Pills or a college administrator to discuss their child's performance or grades at college.