POPSUGAR UK

How (and When) to Intervene When You See a Mom Struggling in Public

24/05/2018 - 11:20 PM

Every mom has been there. You're out in public, maybe getting groceries, mailing a package, or waiting to board your plane at the airport, when your child decides to flip the f*ck out [1]. You start by trying to sweetly soothe the beast, praying that the tantrum will be short-lived [2]. When it keeps going, you do your best quiet-yell voice (also known as the extremely firm whisper) combined with the hard stare, letting your kid know you mean business.

When that still doesn't work, you start to sweat and weigh your options: attempt to physically restrain your flailing child, knowing that will only escalate the situation; abandon your task and tend to your kid in a less public space, even though you really need those groceries; or just sit down and cry. Somehow, you survive, finding the alchemy that defuses the meltdown, deciding you'll return to the post office another day or relying on the kindness of strangers who help get your kid on that plane [3]. But from that day on, you know your child has the potential to torpedo any public outing, and you just pray it never happens again.

Every mom has also been on the other end, watching a mom struggle [4] with a child who's decided to save their worst behaviour for a time when they could show it off to an audience. You probably felt that mom's pain and wanted to do something to help. But what? And is getting involved even appropriate? Here are the dos and don'ts for helping a mom who's struggling with her kid in public.

Dos

Don'ts


Source URL
https://www.popsugar.co.uk/parenting/How-Help-Struggling-Mom-Public-44881216