My son is 11. When he was 6 I smacked him. Yes I’m awful, yes I regretted it as soon as I did it and yes I showered him with love and apologised to him. I was stressed, alone and overwhelmed (no excuse I know)
Since then (and before then) I have never laid a finger on him and although I do tell him off if need be I have rarely shouted at him.
Well yesterday he told me that he remembered when I smacked him as we drove past the area where it happened (near our village, we were in the car). I asked him how he felt at the time and he said scared and sad! He’s never mentioned it before and now I realise that I’ve scarred the boy for life!!
He’s taller than me now, and stronger and it makes me shudder at the thought of him being half my size and scared of me!