Parents Feel Like “Bad Parents” 156 Times a Year, and Honestly, That Feels Low

If you’ve ever stood in the kitchen at 8:00 p.m. while your kid eats microwave mac & cheese off a frisbee and thought, “I am crushing this parenting thing,” congratulations… you’re delusional. But at least you’re in good company.

A new survey finds that the average parent feels like a “bad” parent three times a week. That’s 156 times a year where you genuinely question if letting your toddler watch six episodes of Paw Patrol in a row was character-building or just a cry for help.

And 45% of parents say this whole raising-humans gig is way more demanding than they expected.

Which is probably because nobody warned us that “sleep training” actually means “everyone cries and no one sleeps.”

On top of that, parents stumble into two situations a week they have absolutely no clue how to handle. Like, should you negotiate with a child who’s screaming because their banana broke in half? Or just light the kitchen on fire and start over?

Also, parents say they need a break from parenting twice a week.

That sounds reasonable… until you realize “a break” usually means hiding in the bathroom scrolling memes while someone shouts your name like you’re a customer service hotline.

But here’s the good news: Kids make their parents laugh 12 times a day. Which is beautiful, really. Between the existential dread and the juice-box explosions, these tiny chaos machines are apparently also hilarious. (Example: A four-year-old once called the cops on his mom for eating his ice cream. Case closed, Your Honor.)