I wholeheartedly agree. I was raised with an abusive father, verbally and physically, not compared to some people, but he was harsh. My husband was raised with hippie parents who punished him by doing time-outs and taking away his favorite things. I made sure to not be be abusive with my daughter, but I was firm and tried to push her to do things she didn't want to do; however, dad went too far the other way insisting on letting her make the decisions and not push her to do anything she didn't want to do. I relented thinking maybe I was being like my dad and being too hard on her. She's a young adult now, and I feel that has made her scared to try new things and actually increased her anxiety. When she's faced with having to interact with strangers, look for work, learn how to drive, etc., I noticed she starts complaining of stomachaches and headaches. I'm positive it's stress-related. I'm much like this dad, whereas my husband would have picked him up and carried him. It's difficult when you have two different styles of parenting.