Could you use a handful of comforting gentle parenting quotes?
Because gentle parenting is no red velvet cakewalk.
It’s damn HARD.
Way harder than letting your temper loose and straight up losing your shit.
That’s easy to do. God, so easy (though I will say your restraint grows with time).
And hell, gentle parenting on top of chronic pain is not easy either.
Dealing with physically painful chronic pain and emotionally painful child defiance/stubbornness/regular kid behavior is a doozy.
You know those classic bathroom breakdowns and frustrated-and-teary-as-hell pillow chucks (to the bed – not at your kiddo, despite maybe really wanting to).
Sometimes you need a little cry or a big scream.
And then a little support when you’re clear-headed.
If another human is physically unavailable for support, and I don’t want to unnecessarily vent to friends via Snapchat or text, then I like to seek out words of comfort and encouragement.
Gary Vee is a top go-to. He’s an entrepreneur and parent. I can watch a 2-minute video on a bathroom break easily and feel better before my kid comes knocking on the door.
Well, almost before he knocks to tell me something.
Usually.
(It’s a habit I’m trying to break with him).
Sarah Ockwell-Smith is another top favorite and a parenting expert.
I’ve mentioned her before in my post on whether it’s ever too late to jump on the gentle parenting bandwagon.
Her words are little hugs in a sentence.
I have a few other mom and dad bloggers included in this list too that I regularly check their feeds and recommend.
Consciously Lisa is a new favorite whom I highly recommend you start following.
She’s an unschooler too, which aligns with the new journey we’re embarking on this month (unschooling for kindergarten!).
So if your kiddo is currently mad at you, not listening to you, not eating their lunch after requesting more, you feel like you’re yelling all the time, yadda yadda yadda…
You need some inspiration, encouragement, and word hugs.
Here are 11 gentle parenting quotes that will lift you up when you’re feeling like the world’s suckiest/shittiest/most mediocre mom.
(If you need support for your Fibromyalgia pain, read this post: 21 Inspiring Fibromyalgia Quotes For Your Most Painful Days)
Gentle parenting quotes for inspiration, connection, empathy, and understanding
Remember – you started your gentle parenting journey to deepen your connection with your child and be able to understand them better. Don’t give up. Take a deep breath and read these quotes instead.
You can also bookmark this page so you can come back to these gentle parenting quotes whenever you need some extra support and reassurance.
To keep the quote at the top of your mind, I suggest writing it on a sticky note or in your planner where you’ll see it regularly.
Be your own cheerleader, why don’t you?
These quotes I’ve taken from gentle parenting-esque bloggers and coaches, such as Issy Butson, Shelly Robinson, and Yolanda Williams.
You should follow these accounts on social media after choosing a quote or two to pen on paper.
This post contains affiliate link(s) at no extra cost to you. These links help keep this blog up and running. Please read my full disclosure policy for more details.
“Children need to know that you are there for them and will protect them. A simple yet effective way of doing this is by teaching your children the importance of an apology, and being willing to apologize yourself.”
– Lisa of Consciously Lisa in this blog post
“Childhood isn’t just practice for adulthood – children are important now. And the more we understand and accept this, the more likely that they will grow up feeling happy and confident and knowing their voices matter.”
– Sarah Ockwell-Smith, in this blog post featuring an excerpt of her new book I can’t wait to read
“Your kid’s life is your kid’s life. They’re the ones ultimately in charge. Sure, there are a lot of other important people (like parents) that surround them, but ultimately, it’s their life. It’s why I’m pushing kids so hard to do what they want to do, even if it goes against what their parents want.”
-Gary Vee in this insightful blog post
“So should we worry that giving children autonomy over their lives will make them lazy? Well, no. Because it is a clear, peer-reviewed, research-backed fact that autonomy will always beat control in the development of motivation and drive.”
– Issy Butson of Stark Raving Dad in this blog post
“Do you see me?” This is the big question your child is asking every day. “Can you recognize me for who I am, different from your dreams and expectations for me, separate from your agenda for me?”
― Shefali Tsabary, author of The Awakened Family: How to Raise Empowered, Resilient, and Conscious Children
“Motherhood has been the hardest and holiest work because my kids are reflecting back to me what I’ve yet to resolve within myself.”
– Shelly Robinson of Raising Yourself
“Children serve as mirrors of their parents’ forgotten self. Those willing to look in the mirror have an opportunity to establish a relationship with their own inner state of wholeness. Once they find their way back to their essence, parents enter into communion with their children, shifting away from the traditional parent-to-child “know it all” approach and more towards a mutual parent-with-child relationship.”
– Dr. Shefali Tsabary, author of The Conscious Parent
“Much of our parenting is based on beliefs that we inherited from our own childhood. If we’re not careful and not doing the work to unf*ck our brains, we will be constantly stuck in cycles of toxic generational narratives. But what’s beautiful about the mind is that it’s malleable. We have the power to change and become the parents we want to be.”
– Yolanda Williams of Parenting Decolonized in this blog post
“Every kid is a revolutionary because we don’t need to be especially outspoken or have eloquent rhetoric, we don’t have to be fierce and loud, the only requirement to be someone who has a say over our own lives is to be a human being…Every kid is a revolutionary because they have the inherent agency to imagine a better world and to participate in the process of changing it.”
-Cindy Wang Brandt on this guest blog post featured in Latinx Parenting
“As Maya Angelou, American author, poet, and self-described Renaissance Woman, wrote, “Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.”
― L.R. Knost, author of The Gentle Parent: Positive, Practical, Effective Discipline
“Boundaries and discipline, when offered non-punitively and in the context of empathy and respect, are gifts we should feel proud of and one of the highest forms of love.”
― Janet Lansbury, author of Elevating Child Care: A Guide To Respectful Parenting
This post contains affiliate link(s) at no extra cost to you. Please read my full disclosure policy for more details.
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Your takeaway
I hope these gentle parenting quotes give you comfort and inspiration.
You started this journey and doing things differently for a reason.
And you know nothing good comes easy.
Continue to connect.
Continue to strive to understand.
Continue to continue, because why go back now?
Okay, so which quote did you write on a sticky note or in your planner?
Tell me below, and share any gentle parenting people I and others need to know about.
I don’t know about you, but I love being a part of this positive, conscious, gentle parenting community!
