I grounded my 10 year old daughter for a month for kicking her brother in the groin

[TiffanyG]

So my 10 year old daughter and 13 year old son were arguing over their favorite chair and it got pretty heated. She's slapped him and pulled his hair before, but tonight she kicked him in the groin as hard as she could. He was on the floor for quite a while and he's still pretty sore. I'm scared she could make him sterile if she did that again so I grounded her for a month. AIBU?

Does anyone recognise the 'testicular injury causing boy's death' story? The pp might not want to link, as it will out her location. I cannot find it on google at all, and am interested in the biology.

The only two death stories were of adult men, one involved in a protracted fight with another adult, and one in a rodeo accident. Testicular damage, which can lead to sterility, is mentioned occasionally. But given the number of times boys and men receive blows to the groin, it's a tiny risk.

OP has focussed a great deal on the hazard to her DS's future fertility, but one unprecedented kick from a younger silbling is not raising his risk. I think the focus needs to be on no hitting (anywhere) and on helping them find more amicable ways to cohabit.

It probably doesn't help that both will be in early puberty. So the hormone-fuelled repeat of the toddler years may worsen before it gets better.

Well mine are now 24,23,15 and 14 so yes we still have the no hit rule.

Of course siblings wind each other up but that's no reason to allow any physical response. We didn't do ferrel in our house. If you are pissed off then say so, talk, family chat time.

This acceptance of siblings fighting is as annoying as allowing toddler tantrums to continue or teenagers to be continually bloody stroppy.

The home should be happy. Not a war zone.

Trollsworth no of course it is serious, if it happened.

DownbyTheRiverside are you saying they get more violent as they get older? Definatly not my experience. That would worry me a lot.

I think it is a very odd first thread. So do I, or oddly worded at least.

Oh!

Mine are 23 and 19 now, and they were very stroppy when they were in their early teens, with DD being the older one and very good at verbally winding her brother up and always needing the last word.
He was much less verbally skilled, so he was usually the one to start the physical stuff. Which is why the 'Muuum' bellow from him was necessary.
No, they did get much better as they got older, because there was always a tailored consequence to turning my home into a war zone. I don't ask a lot from my family, but if you are sharing a house, you will have to learn to share space, time and stuff.

Yes do agree that early teens are the hardest parenting times of all.