I got to be a stay-at-home parent and there were times I felt very afraid at home with my little children. I was suffering with depression and severe anxiety at the time and was not aware of some severe abuse issues I had repressed. My primary goal as a parent was to never hurt them the way I had been hurt as a child. I was able to do better by them than I had received as a child and I apologised when my difficulties made life tough for them. I did not abuse them and I am so very glad about that, but there were still ways in which I was not a great mom because I was depressed and hanging on by my fingernails. My fears kept me from doing as much fun stuff with them as I wish I could have done and I limited their social activity sometimes because of my fears and wish I had not held them back due to my own needs.

I think the important thing is that you need to ask yourself is, "WHY am I so afraid?" Fear doesn't exist for no reason and discovering that reason can help you find what you need to remove or cure the fear you have. There are NO perfect parents, but there is more help for parents than there was when my children were small (oldest is 27).