What do you think about this woman's style of parenting?

[Atealltheminieggs]

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-11942993/Im-strict-mother-parent-reported-social-services.html

I found this quite an interesting read. Hats off to her, she was divorced and then the 3 children list their father, meanwhile she's worked several jobs to pay the bills.

I'm nowhere near as strict as this and admit to doing some of the things she talks about. I actually drove an hour to deliver my sons forgotten sleeping bag (although he was much younger), I have allowed my youngest to sleep in my bed. I'm way more lax on screens and devices. Although I am very strict on other things such as doing chores, school attendance.

I will admit my eldest frustrates me with his laid back attitude to life (laziness) although he's bright capable and independent. My youngest is a sensitive worrier but very determined.

Wow this is not nice. Her kids must be terrified of her.

The forgotten sleeping bag thing is awful and I don't actually believe the Scouts would have accepted him without his mandatory kit. They must have been able to provide him a spare.

I thought that. Ime they do face a couple of spares. I wondered whether she was lying for controversy.

If this is for real she is parenting under an enormous amount of fear, but each to their own, she probably had a similar upbringing.
It appears as she's so very judgemental and righteous concerning other parenting methods that she's not actually that confident with her own.
A hell of a lot of justification going on.

meh
She parents her way, every other parent parents the way that they do.
I take issue though with things like this being trotted out for randomers to offer criticism or judgement.
It’s really nothing to do with anyone is it.

They aren’t being abused, just parented.

I wouldn’t have left my child with no bed cover in minus degree weather but everything else sounds pretty reasonable. She’s obviously extremely hard working herself. The children have lost their father and she’s tried to build resilience so they don’t fall into a victim mindset down the line.

It’s not tough love, there’s nothing loving about anything she says.

Parent how you want but don't be surprised if your kids cut contact the second they leave home 🤷‍♀️

Her son came second in a cross country race and she told him it wasn't good enough, and that nobody remembers who came second. It's difficult to see how this kind of comment is in any way helpful.

It sounds like a miserable upbringing in the main. She thinks it’s a success but the children haven’t grown up yet. I hope it all works out for them but I wonder what their relationships will be like in 10 years time?

She’s a terrible parent masquerading as a great one. They’re ruined, those kids of hers are.

As with most things grains of it are right. I see so much molly coddling of kids so they never face any consequences. Im
kind of with her in the sleeping bag thing. The cross country comment was just thick and cruel. She lost me there. You do your best that’s all you can do.

Hope the mum doesn’t need any care in her twilight years because I can just imagine how that will go.

Absolutely bonkers.

Teaching in dependence, cooking, cleaning... Absolutely fine but stuff like banning a bereft two year old from the bed to self soothe is utterly cruel.

The child doesn't self soothe but gets used to the rejection and it affects the brain.

I strongly dislike all this inflexible behavior.

I don't think any extreme behaviour is healthy at all. Having some routines is fine but they should have some flexibility. Also what she thinks her dc need maybe totally different to what they actually need.

Just reading and how finished but I wasn't sure if I should roll my eyes at her texting her son a photo of his camping gear and saying they look nice. That's taunting for its own sake. It's one thing to not fetch it for him (I can understand that and I may or may not do the same) but that bit was cruel. Don't know if she's playing up for the public or what.

@CiderJolly

Indeed when she's a very frail incapacitated elderly lady calling out for her children they can tell her to rely on "self soothing".

No, that is not how I would ever want to parent. It is entirely possible to teach a child to take responsibility for themselves while also showing a bit of love and kindness when they fuck up. I'm also a fan of flexibility over rigidity any day.

The woman clearly thinks that she has got it right. It might be interesting to hear what her children think in a few years. And to know what kind of relationship they have with her after leaving home.

The sleeping bag thing is utter cuntery

Poor kids. She’s not teaching them independence, she’s teaching them compliance and subservience- breaking them in basically.

The taunting is awful. Horrible woman.

Her 'crazy headmistress' pose in all the photos is hilarious.

If her children are truly happy, then she's doing alright by them. She sounds a bit extreme in some ways and strict but fair in other ways. Nothing out of the ordinary.

Leaving a child shivering in a tent is pretty rotten imo - he could have got hypothermia. I'm surprised the scout leaders didn't contact her.

Most of the rest of it isn't too bad, but the part I don't like is when she says something about kids being taught to do their best, not THE best. All children should absolutely be praised for doing the best that they can because we are all different. We can't all be the best at something.

The way the interview comes across is just typical smug DM reader/interviewee though.

And I'd like to hear the point of view of the parent who reported her to social services. I would put money on it not just being because she didn't let the kids watch tv.

Somebody should tell her that that's how Boris Johnson was parented. Might give her pause for thought.

This is the bit that totally crossed the line for me. By all means have rules but this is dangerous - there is a great storyline on a programme I watch that showed the mental effects of being told you always need to win.

That and sending him to Rugby with a fever.

Yes I'd love to see a repeat interview when they're adults.

I know someone who parented like this and one of the adult children is on her 4th marriage and has cut ties with her mother completely. The other is a heroin addict and dealer who has just been sent to prison.

She's probably a Boris supporter