When Parents Love Too Much: Freeing Parents and Children to Live Their Own Lives

Rating:
Summary: Boy! Could I relate!
Review: I bought this book because I was getting way too stressed about disappointments in my children's lives. Objectively I knew that through a little pain comes growth, but I still couldn't stop my almost physical pain when my kids encountered failure. I just wanted to rush in, take away the pain, and save them. I knew this was wrong, but I needed to better understand why I was thinking this way before I could change.
When I read this book, I clearly saw what was going on. I also saw the beginnings of signs in my kids that I was "over parenting" them. I also saw and understood alot of what was going on in my friend's families (they are all now reading this).
The info is not EARTH shaking, but it is illuminating. the book is easy to read, but I wish there had been more about how to change your parenting skills. (really only one or two chapters on this, the rest is examples of loving too much and the effect it has on the kids, and the kids in their adulthood).

Rating:
Summary: An Emotional Lifesaver When I Was Going Through Rough Times!
Review: Mitch and Laurie have compassionately written about a phenomenon that is not often talked about - one where parents desperately love and cling to their children, to the point of emotionally smothering them.

When Parents Love Too Much was a critical read in my own life that helped me see the insanity of the relationship with my mother. Not only did Mitch and Laurie pinpoint exactly what I was going through, through this book they challenged me to rethink my role as a daughter and ultimately as a parent myself.

This book touched on many issues I faced as the child of a parent who loved too much and gave answers to the underlying questions and concerns that I had. More importantly, I found specific strategies to help me disentangle myself from the emotional bondage.

When Parents Love Too Much provides a thorough look into the lives of both parent and child caught in "over-loving." Without blaming either party, this book helped me regain confidence and belief in myself. It was a tremendous help to me and continues to be a book I refer back to.

Rating:
Summary: Poorly written, repetitive
Review: Too bad that this is the one book out there on a very important topic. The authors repeat themselves, contradict themselves, and blow up the material--enough for a good article--into a fat book. That said, the book can be helpful. Just be prepared to skim through. You really don't need to read the same few ideas over, and over, and over, and over again.