Motherhood is not an easy task in and of itself.

While there's a lot of pressure from your friends and family to follow their advice on how you should raise your kids, you have your own opinions on the matter, and that may not be in line with what everyone else believes.

All I can tell you is that there's no particular way a child should be raised. All they need is a lot of love, and everything else will take care of itself.

New parents are usually the ones who get criticized the most, especially single mothers.

When I had my first child, I was getting calls from distant relatives telling me everything I should do during my son's first year.

Everyone seemed to have their own ideas on how long you should breastfeed, where your baby should sleep, and how often they should be coddled.

I thought I was ready for motherhood until I was judged based on every decision I made. There are some parents who have had it way worse than me though...

While browsing through a discussion forum for parents, I found a post from a single mother struggling to deal with her own mother opinions about how she should raise her child.

The anonymous woman's mother was accusing her of "abusing" her son for what most of us would think to be a downright ridiculous reason...

A disapproving mother

"My [mother] has repeatedly called me an abusive parent," the concerned single mom wrote on Mumsnet.

"She is horrified that I co-sleep with my 11 month old, and thinks he should be in nursery. She said I need to 'separate' myself from him and that its 'abusive' to keep him relying on me."

The woman is also irritated by how her mother thinks she's breastfeeding her son "too much."

"He was slow weaning, but he eats a lot now. When I get upset when she haves a go at me, then she calls me "abusive" again for getting upset in front of the baby."

"I'm a lone parent working part time nights from home, and me and my baby are very happy. I just don't know how she can casually use such language. Its really upsetting me," she concluded.

Opinions

Dozens of people came to the mom's defense, and gave their two cents on the situation.

"I think you need to tell her to f*** off but be prepared for a lot of nonsense calls to your local safeguarding team," wrote one user.

Some people think that her mother's reaction says more about the mom than herself:

"I believe this sort of behavior comes from deep-set insecurity and envy. She see's you choosing to parent differently as a criticism on her and is pissed off that you are actually doing really well as a mum. Better than she did," wrote another user.

Strangely, a mother's unconditional love seems to always generate a lot of controversy...

I think I'll have to agree with most of the users on Mumsnet when it comes to this situation.

There are no signs that the mother is abusing her toddler just by sleeping beside him or giving him more milk than what most others babies his age would receive.

Studies have shown that children who have a stronger bond with their mothers live happier lives.

In addition, research has shown that cuddling babies releases feel-good hormones that keeps them healthy.

So while we'll always hear stories of mother's being shamed for breastfeeding their children, it's important that we respect a mother's decision (that is if it's not endangering the life of her little one).

Have you ever been in a situation where a family member or friend has called you a bad parent? What was your response?

Do you think motherhood is something personal, or should we all be able to comment on the way people raise their children?

Let us know what you think in the comments!

[Source: Daily Mail / Mumsnet]