With the joys of motherhood, sometimes come horrible thoughts. How do you know if you're capable of hurting yourself or your kids?

The news is filled with tragic stories of mothers who snap and harm their own children. A Mom in Texas recently smothered her 4-year-old to death for incessant crying--other babies have been killed by drowning, beatings and even thrown out the window, all at the hand of the woman who gave birth to them. These incidents are rare and horrific acts of violence. But the idea of a Mom being pushed close to the brink can be understood by millions of women. While the majority of Moms don't act on these impulses, most of us can admit we've been driven to a very dark place -- and felt terrible about ourselves immediately after.

Moms in the office remember all too well the times that parenthood felt too much to take.

A Mom of a 13-year-old still remembers clearly how tough those first few months were.

"I will never forget one day, she had begun crying at noon and didn't stop until midnight! I seriously thought I was going to lose it."

Another Mom completely agrees. "If my son wasn't sleeping, he was crying. I felt like I could kill myself. I thought, if this what being a mother is, I don't want it."

One Mom says it's the antagonistic disrespect of a preschooler that sent her close to the edge.

 "He would unbuckle his seat belt and taunt me knowing I was helpless to do anything in that moment. I hate that I felt such hostility toward him; I truly didn't like him."

One Mom's second child was so difficult as a baby she felt regret over having a child so soon after her first. "We would put him in the swing with the hair dryer blowing underneath him. The white noise was the only thing that would make him stop. I was so miserable those days, and thought I would never survive it. I would literally count the minutes to when my husband would be home. I would yell and scream and cry and I hated life."

One Mom talked about her toddler's fascination with constantly throwing her cup of milk. Logically, she knows it's normal, but when her daughter tosses that cup time after time, it's feels like a personal attack."Sometimes I can just sit and cry, afraid that this is who she'll grow up to be--that I got the bad seed. And if that's the kid I got, I don't even want her. Look at me, literally crying over spilled milk."

Mom•Logic friend and family counselor, Rosanne Tobey LPC says it's important for Moms to follow three tips when you feel like you're close to the edge.

Don't strike: Never raise your hand to your children when your close to losing it. Hitting when angry is dangerous, and parents are more likely to be too heavy handed.
Distract: Put on a video, distract your child, put them in their bedroom and let them yell and scream.
Give yourself a timeout: It's important to step away from the situation before it gets out of hand.

Rosanne admits: "Even I can remember a time where I put my daughter in her crib, stepped outside in 40 degree temps and sat on a step with a hot cup of tea while my daughter and I both calmed down."