People posting picture of their ill children

[Notsowifeymaterial]

So normally when I'm browsing on fb and see someone's posted a picture of their child on the sofa or in bed captioned aw my poorly baby 😢 I usually ignore it or if it's a friend I'll comment hope they feel better soon etc.
But yesterday someone on my friends list posted a picture of their child actually on a stretcher in the back of an ambulance captioned poor baby off to hospital. He's struggling to breathe.
I was imaging the scenario as this..
Paramedic - right ok we need to get this child to the hospital right now. Mum are you ready?
Mum - hang on can you just step back a sec whilst I take a photo.
Paramedic - umm.....
Mum - ok I'll just take one more so I can see which is best, ok got it. Hmm should I apply a filter. Which one will get me more likes do you think? shows paramedic the photos
Paramedic - um I'm sorry miss but we do really need to get to the hospital?
Mum - right of course. Let's go. Does the ambulance have wifi so I can post it on Facebook?
paramedic internally facepalms
BTW the child ended up being fine and is now home.
Aibu to think that that's just inappropriate for a mother to do?

Theonlyliving. Ok that's a fair comment. Maybe I have come across as miss judgeypants but even so my point still stands. I'm not talking about people posting for support or a photo from the hospital as I can see why they want to share the news in one go or don't want to deal with 100s of phone calls.
My point is about in an emergency situation (I am an A&E nurse so know that a child experiencing difficulty in breathing is an emergency and the ambulance would be leaving the house asap to get to the hospital) why would someone's first thought to be to take a picture of their poorly child on an ambulance with an oxygen mask.
Surely close relatives who would need to know could be contacted via phone call then a past when everything had settled saying that the child's fine now after a scary few hours etc.

WorraLiberty yy to what you said, it's just attention seeking!

Yanbu. I also don't like to see photos of terminally ill children shared to prove a point about suffering. Just upsetting and doesn't help.

Those parents who share pics mid accident or chaos, they are attention seeking IMO.

YANBU, it's one thing making a post about it for support and to inform friends and family, it's another thing taking a photo as if it's a spectacle for others to marvel at. Really distasteful if they're seriously ill or injured.

I absolutely hate it. Such a breach of childrens' privacy. We don't expect people to take our photos and plaster then all over social media when we're feeling poorly and vulnerable.

I feel the same about tantrum photos.

Yes, social media is often all about attention seeking.

But I think people should use their own photos to attention seek with.

Not other people's, especially children who have no say in their private moments being published.

Parents of terminally ill children can do what they like imo, whatever gets them through.
Some of you sound quite Lily livered

I remembering a friend once posting that her daughter had fallen downstairs, lost consciousness, and they were waiting for an ambulance. Obviously a perfect time to be on Facebook...

Course that is exactly how it panned out ay OP ?

What an imagination .. But to be honest I do not think YABU in this instance . , just a tad imaginative of how it went.

YANBU it screams attention seeking, prob the same people who write a status saying 'so upset' or 'so angry' , and then when people ask what's up they say they don't want to talk about it! Argggghhh! This is one of the reasons I am slowly coming off FB spending more time on mumsnet as it's annoying me.
That also reminds me of those that tell you they are coming of FB or have a friends "clear out"! Again so people say 'oh don't go', or 'I hope you don't delete me!'
Thanks OP that feels better to have a little moan

Uhhh yes i agree i have also seen pictures of sick children sleeping & in hospital beds recovering from operatons looking shocked!
I wonder when this generation of kids grows up what implications it will have for them seeing their upbringing piccies all highs & lows as a facebook album?!
It feels like the child is a possession & something to show off rather than a person. It is all about the parents ego look at my child & my life its all very sad & shows a lack of respect & privacy - are no things sacred any more

Have you experienced having an extremely ill child in hospital for weeks on end? Do you have any fucking idea what it's like? Do you know how scary and isolating it is? If you don't then don't comment on things you have no idea about!! If you do then you should be the last person to judge other parents who have gone through it! It is a very very lonely place. I have uploaded pictures of my dd recovering after open heart surgery in the ICU and then back on the ward when she woke up, didn't need oxygen anymore, her pacing wires came out etc.

I did for a number of reasons-

1. I was just so ecstatic that she had survived and I knew that a lot of people on fb cared too.
2. I needed emotional support and an outlet from the isolation of it all.
3. A lot of people constantly tried to downplay how sick she was/is by saying things like 'she looks so well - maybe they were wrong?!' And 'I'm sure she'll be fine!'. I wanted to show them that no she wouldn't be fine and she will always be classed as life limited.
4. To show her the journey she has been on when she's older.

So if you see those posts on fb please don't fucking judge! Just scroll past if you don't like it!

Owllady does the privacy of those children not matter then, as long as the parent gets to do what they want?

I honestly think they are looking for babysitters for their other children or help with school runs. What other point would there be?

Why would you do that with an ambulance picture though? Why not a straightforward status?

I think posting these pictures on FB (and any pictures, actually, but maybe that's a different debate) is hugely unfair on children. They should get a choice as to how they're represented online. I would hate to have someone post a picture of me on FB, vulnerable, in the back of an ambulance. I would never do that to my kids.

Am also shocked by the number of "it only takes a second" comments.
I'm pretty sure taking your phone out. Opening the camera app, focusing the camera etc. Takes more than a second. And trust me if a child needs treatment for breathing difficulties. Every single second counts

And how would the parent react if someone took a pic of them at the hospital with their child, and uploaded it to FB without their permission?

Littlepig Yes it's already happening...

www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/woman-sues-parents-facebook-photos_uk_57da6bbfe4b0d584f7efdba1

I agree with the op, not everything is a fb opportunity

I agree. I think it's horrible. Attention seeking and not fair on the child. I really don't get it.

Worra, I'll be completely honest with you. My late sister had a chronic illness and spent most of our childhood in hospital. We are talking a massive chunk of her and mine and my mums life. We have hundreds of photos of of her/us in hospital because that unfortunately was her life. I have more photos of her looking ill than looking well. Facebook didn't exist in those days but if it did maybe my Mum would have posted photos online, I don't know. But these families don't stop existing because they hidden away from every day life. Reading this thread seems like an extension of all the people who disappeared or became invisible because they 'just couldn't cope with it'. Well sometimes the family struggle to cope with it, they aren't the ones that should be on the receiving end of criticism imo.

I too agree with you OP. Just why woukd you. The last thing I would want is a sick picture of me for anyone to see, so why would I do that to my children.
Recently worse still a photo of a friends 90 year old mum in hospital, when some of the family didn't even know she had been rushed in. Their comments were more about being shocked and worried. Clearly a photo doesn't communicate enough in that case and only serves to cause concern.

I always think people who complain about FB in this way are using it wrong. You get that its meant to be your friends and family that see what you put on FB, yes? You're not sharing photos of your kids with everyone on the internet, you're not attention seeking from strangers.

'Distasteful'? 'Upsetting'?
Just be thankful you're not that parent with that child in those circumstances. I am surprised how judgemental and frankly nasty a lot of these posts are about people going through horrible situations.
Privacy/children is a separate issue to this. Unless you all blank out your well children from all social media pictures and the only objection is to any picture of a child.

Owllady I understand the need to take photos when something like that is such a massive part of someone's life.

However, publishing them on the internet without that person's permission (and in many cases they're too young to give permission) is just wrong in my opinion.

And trust me if a child needs treatment for breathing difficulties. Every single second counts

And trust me that when you are the parent in the ambulance, you know that and you aren't faffing with your phone while the child is critical. You can pretty much take it as read that if they are taking the photo, they know the danger has passed or its not at a critical time.

Posting a picture of an unwell child makes more sense than posting one of your breakfast or thighs or Fitbit.

Does it though?

Yanbu op. I find hospital check-ins, ill photo posts and constant updates on kids d&v via status annoying and unnecessary.

I don't think the op is using Facebook wrong at all, and neither are the rest of this on this thread who think it is inappropriate to take a photo of your child suffering from breathing difficulties in an ambulance. Let alone post it on FB.