To think my little boy is an absolute sweetheart?

do people on MN honestly think that PIP is enough to cover carers? No, carers would come from a different budget after an OT and SW determined such things to be necessary. They have nothing to do with PIP.

My children are young carers, we do also have a social worker and there is no evidence of harm or neglect. one of them is mid-teen and still doesnt hate us so I can only assume they are doing okay and hope for the best. I have no other options here.

He's 7, not 2.

A 14 year old could fall down the stairs and break their spine, pour boiling water over themselves but we leave them properly unsupervised.

In this case the OP was in bed, in earshot and if the child is anything like mine he would be lounging around watching TV.

I'm not hungover but I'm only just getting up properly. I woke up at 7, got up to make coffee at 7.30 then brought it back to bed. Both kids were just playing (6 and 8) and have got themselves a drink and a snack.

Nobody is neglected, wandering around outside barefoot and dishevelled or trying to cook a full English and make a cup of tea. They have rules about not touching the kettle etc and it would never occur to them to try.

It doesn't sound like the OP was passed out unconscious?

also this

@AInightingale bang on

The only time DH and I both drink more than 2 drinks together is if someone else is minding kids and taking responsibility for them.

What if they need a&e in the night and neither parent is responsive or able to drive. I don’t understand why people don’t think about these things.

@LuckySantangelo35

It isn’t normal for a 7yo to think “ah Mum’s not up at breakfast time and is a hungover mess so I’ll have to get her some sugar fixes”

I had a hangover a few wks ago - guess what I still got up at 7.30am when they did, fed my DC and took them on a day out because they are my responsibility.

While she and DH were lying on the child could have decided to leave the house, could have attempted to cook some hot food for Mum, could have fallen down the stairs and broken his spine.

It’s not remotely ok.

Stop being bitter because people disagreed with you. Hide the thread rather than embarrassing yourself further

is “glass of squash” a euphemism for “hair of the dog” ie perhaps a bloody mary?

@Moro93

why wouldn’t it be? The boy didn’t exactly make a full English breakfast did he?! Doesn’t sound that experienced in getting up and making breakfast for himself and mum to me

@Robinni

he isn’t take responsibility to look after her though h
is he? He bought her some biscuits and juice, big deal

Judging by some of the responses to my comment that the OP sounds rank, stewing in bed hungover with a 7 year old catering to her, some of you were on the sauce yourselves last night.

I hope you are all #blessed with a pre-teen to look after you with your hangovers today.

Because children shouldn't be carers, it's not their responsibility to sacrifice their childhoods to care for adults when we have a benefit system to prevent this

That's what pip/carers allowance/ attendance allowance is for

He was in the pool until 9.30pm, was someone else babysitting him? You’re saying his dad needs sleep after his shifts, but was he left in supervising a child swimming while so, so tired while you were out drinking.

I hope you made him breakfast once you got up. I dread to think what might have happened if he’d attempted to make you a cup of tea rather than a glass of squash…

Good lord some people on here are unnecessarily nasty aren't they - accusing this person of neglect off the basis of one hangover, some juice, and some biscuits.

Have any of you met a 7 year old? My niece adores being 'helpful' - making me toast, drinks, tidying up etc. She gets a little sense of accomplishment from it - makes her feel grown up.

The kid probably recognized his mum was a bit under the weather - it hardly suggests he sees 'hangovers' all the time he may have even done it just because! It's something my niece would do.

It's also not some crime that she was still asleep past 10am. The child is 7, not a newborn. Again, my niece would be delighted to spring out of bed to get cereal and watch whatever she wanted on TV - unlucky for her, SIL is an early riser.

He sounds lovely OP. You're obviously raising him to be very thoughtful

Something doesn’t sit right with me here. So your 7 year old was (presumably) up on his own until after 10am, fixing ‘breakfast’ for his hungover mother who never does this?

This wasn’t the first time was it, OP.

Ps I’ve just read some people commenting about their children being young carers..

I was a young carer and it was harmful - missed out on childhood, left me vulnerable and was very stressful.

I am very resilient as an adult but I’m also very self sacrificing and find it difficult to prioritise my own needs.

I have health issues now and any time my DC say they will look after me or go to do anything for me I am adamant saying “this is not your responsibility, you are a child and mummy is capable”

They do chores as part of the family and help with meals under supervision, DH and other family help me personally where needed.

I realise this may be difficult to read, but having lived it I can honestly say there are long term impacts and anyone without adult family help should be engaging with SS to get appropriate care in place.

It really isn’t ok to leave a 7yo unsupervised and without breakfast until after 10/11am in the day.

This.

I’ve had lie ins to this time but always had DH or other family to sort breakfast for young children this age.

He is a sweetheart OP, but the fact he is taking on responsibility for looking after you so young would be concerning to most.

My aunt always slept in until 10 or after.
My cousins had to fend for themselves for breakfast and getting themselves to school.
When we were grown, my cousin would come to my house and complain about how her mother chomped on her toast and slurped her coffee and snapped the newspaper. She’d describe my aunt in detail. She was visiting from out of state but spent all her time at my house because her mother got on her very last nerve.
It was hysterical and I’m laughing thinking back on it.
Thank you for that memory of my cousin whom we lost to breast cancer.

I was quite often up before my parents when I was 7. It was great, I got to watch cartoons in peace. Never felt neglected.
OP said her son is 7 and had just got up. People are being ridiculous. It was sweet and absolutely nothing worrying or neglectful about it.
You need to read about proper cases of neglect before saying such rubbish.

Really?? Can't wait until mine are old enough to watch TV whilst I lie in 😂I was thinking more when they're 4 and 6 🤔.

OP your boy does sound lovely ❤️ Mine once plugged his dummy in his friend's mouth, when she was crying. He was only 18 months at the time, I almost died. Hope your hangover is improved!

He sounds adorable, OP!

You can’t live your life based on u likely scenarios otherwise no parent would ever sleep.

Im an insanely deep sleeper and uses to sleep through my kids crying as babies. I can’t say I ever worry I won’t be able to wake up if something happened in the night, life’s too short to be so neurotic

I did wonder if it was a typo!

So your answer was to judge them instead?

Some people have really showed their true colours on this thread.

A disabled mum explains how inevitably children are relied on to chip in with care and she’s attacked and disbelieved and even asked why she doesn’t have carers. I feel too many posters are deeply unhappy and should get help for themselves jot pick on other vulnerable posters

What if your child needed you during the night because they were ill, or something happened in the house and you were too pissed to wake up properly - isn't that the issue? You don't say much about your husband except that he is 'very asleep' so was he drinking as well. That's why I can't understand why people seem okay with parents of small children falling into bed poleaxed of a weekend - don't think it's judgmental or sanctimonious to believe that one adult in a house should be sober (or at least not half-cut) when young kids are sleeping there too.