Is it ok to leave a naughty child home?

[Harls123]

Hi all ,
So my nearly 3 year old little boy (currently on a waiting list for an autism. Assessment) is an absolute nightmare at the moment, he is really rough with other kids, tantrums are endless etc, its really hard for me to deal with on my own (im a single mum)
Would it be so bad to leave him witb a relative whilst me and my eldest went to a kids birthday party? I have the worst mum guilt as i dont have the energy and um having anxiety about going to the party 😭 .. I know i sound dramatic but im really going through it at minute 🙃
All advise is welcome.

Not at all. The party is bound to be loud and there will be too much noise for him to cope with. The Birthday child’s family will probably appreciate you not taking him too. Leave him with the relative and enjoy some time with your other child

I think that's a very reasonable approach in the circumstances, although I'd reframe it as 'because he won't be able to cope' rather than 'because he's naughty'. He's probably genuinely not capable of behaving the way he 'should', even allowing for typical toddler moments, so it's kinder to everyone not to put him in that position.

His challenges are also inevitably going to take up a lot of your attention and limit what you can do day to day with your children, so it's really good for your eldest and your relationship with them to be able to do things like this sometimes.