I'm still reeling a bit today from a conversation I had with another mom yesterday. If I understood her point through her high emotions, I think it was, "You're not qualified to have opinions on breast pumps because you didn't work as many hours away as I did." I wasn't trying to be any final authority, but rather mentioned what worked for me when the topic came up. This is someone I respect, and enjoy, as a woman and fellow mom, and I didn't see the attack coming.
I think my incredibly wise friend who happens not to have children summarized it best when she said, "There's so much pressure on moms today to be perfect that it makes people crazy!" As an occasionally crazy mom, I think she nailed the phenomenon. It's a little scary out there in mass media parenting land.
But no time to work--I'm off to a meeting about services we offer for caregivers of elders. I wonder, do baby boomers caring for elder parents experience the same subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) competition? Anyone want to comment?
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Oh, I am sorry for the on-going discomfort of a conversation gone bad! I can empathize with you.
But, to answer your question, no. I don't believe that caregivers to the elderly attach the same sense of personal ego "investment" that many caregivers/parents assign their children. In my opinion, most people will see caring for the elderly a "service" while many who care for children are nuturing and molding a "product".
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