Today I "lost" my child for the first time

[amispeakingintongues]

Transpired that he was hiding between a book shelf in the small library we were in.

I went into a frantic full blown screaming panic attack and believed he'd ran out into the road and went running across the streets screaming his name. I'm honestly traumatised. Every time I think about it I feel sick. He's only 2. And I'm pregnant.

I am still reeling from the experience so please make me feel like i'm not such an awful mother for this happening?

In January we were in Mexico on a beach and Dh went to get drinks I turned around for one minute and 2 yo son had vanished. I couldn’t find him for at least 5 mins I was screaming trying to get other holiday makers to help. It was so awful. Someone found him having almost made his way to kids club pool. Pure panic is how I felt

My friend lost her DD2 when we were at swimming. We were all frantic....turned out she hid herself in a locker!

So far I've only had this with dd1 (🤞🤞I don't experience it with dd2 or Ds!) and she was older than most stories mentioned here. She was 5 nearly 6 and we were on a boat trip at night while on holiday. It's was a fairly small boat and was only our family on board but when I couldn't find her I absolutely freaked thinking she'd gone overboard! One of the most terrifying moments of my life - she was in the toilet 🙄😆

Yes it's awful isn't it. You're not the only one

We recently 'lost' our kids on a campsite with their 15 year old cousin - turned out they'd got a flat tire and had to walk back.

Not a fun experience

My brother completely vanished.

This was in the days before mobile phones but eventually my dad, who had got out for the evening managed to ring my mum to tell her that he found my little brother fast asleep in the back of the car. He had snuck in and fell asleep. This was before car seats!

Similar to a pp, my son decided to hide inside an enclosed tunnel type thing at the play area of a park, id literally not taken my eyes off him for more than seconds whilst I saw to his sister, and it was really quiet so I knew he couldn't be mixed up with the crowds or have left the fences area, so I knew deep down he had to be there in the play area. Didn't stop the absolute sheer panic rising inside me, was only a matter of seconds before he decided to pop his head out after me frantically shouting him, the relief was unreal. Can't imagine how parents cope when they're children are taken and they never get them back again.

My DD is 12 but I still can clearly recall three episodes like you've described. I can't think about them too hard or it makes me feel ill. It just shows that we care, that the instinct to protect our children will kick in if needed. Be kind to yourself OP x

I ‘lost’ both of mine, so I’m far worse than you. They were both pre-schoolers and it was in the supermarket. I was hyperventilating, not understanding how they could have both escaped me. I felt sure someone had taken them.

I was running up and down, looking down the ailes and no sign of them. I ran outside, swivel-headed and no sign there either. I went back inside and found them at the pick ‘n mix barrels, helping themselves to sweets.

The feeling of utter relief, while my heart was still hammering and my legs were jelly. Even now, it is all coming back to me.

We laugh about the story now, but it was horrendous at the time.

I lost both my kids 2 & 3yo at the same time in a play barn yesterday (also heavily pregnant) the eldest had dissapeared on a big kid climbing frame, emerged at the bottom of a slide I'd never thought she would go on, and the youngest was just pottering around in the toddler section. Even though we were in a kid freindly place it was still scary. I cant imagine if it was somewhere else how terrifying that would be

Rather than shout your child’s name when you loose them, shout their gender, age and outfit.

Calling their name means nothing to anyone else, but if you shout “Lost 2 year old boy, pink shorts, blue t shirt” on repeat then everyone who hears you is looking out for a small boy in a blue shirt and pink shorts.

Oh gosh, these are all heart stopping. My son is 2 and is a runner and an escape artist. I'm sure people think I'm ott but he's always on reins or in a trolley, unless we're in an enclosed space. And I have to watch him, every single second. I don't think I'd cope with 2!

On the plus side I'm getting fitter with all the running I'm now doing to keep up!

Lose not loose!

My son did this as well I had put him in the playpen while I got my o ok der daughter ready for her swimming lesson turned round and he had gone. Found him in a locker laughing away to himself. He's 11 now and would probably still do it
Lost him on holiday in Spain once, then heard his cries for help - he was in a grabber machine!!
I have many more stories and yes I should have learned from the first time but he was fast and a Houdini .
I laugh now, at the time not so much

My mum lost my two older brothers in town once while pregnant with me (so in the 70s). She’d left them in the car while she went into a shop. She found the older boy in a shop nearby and the younger halfway up a fence round the corner surrounded by worried old ladies.

I lost my daughter outside someone’s house, next to a park, while we were talking outside. It turned out after a desperate search of the park that she’d just wandered INTO this person’s house and was watching the telly.

Many years ago I lost my 3 year old DS in a John Lewis when he went through a furniture display while I went round it. A shop assistant and I found him after about 15 terrifying minutes. He approached me with the biggest grin you can ever imagine, saying 'I was hidin'. Little !

I was talking to friends in a play park today and my toddler wandered off to another area, she's so bloody quick I was just on my way to her to find she had slipped on some steps up to the slide and face planted onto one of them. She was in proper 'can't breathe' hysterics and had another mum hovering around her not knowing what to to do. She was fine 2 mins later but for the rest of the day I have felt like the absolute worst mum in the world.

Definitely not awful!

2 lovely ladies brought my 4yo son back to me on Wednesday.
I was paying for parking, he ran off the catch up dad and younger brother. He didn’t catch them and couldn’t find them in the store.

2 lovely ladies spotted him wandering around, asked if he was ok and then helped him find me. I was just walking into the store as they were coming out and he shouted Mummy and ran to me 😭

I was so so grateful but felt so sick!

My mum once lost naked toddler me on some sand dunes. Apparently particularly nightmarish as she was sinking in deep sand with each step and couldn't catch me up and I disappeared. She passed several other people who said oh yes, she went that way (because it was totally normal to see a naked toddler alone??!!!) and she finally found me.
My eldest dd had a habit of hiding in clothes racks in shops.
Glad all OK, OP.

the first time was life changing; eldest age 2 escaped from me in a usa massive store, was hiding in bridal gown racks, i was both pregnant and had another child in a stroller. staff refused to leave their work stations, he was constantly 10 ft ahead of me, i went up the escalator (with the buggy) only to see him come down, down only to see him at the elevator.
in the end i sat down and cried and said to myself if it's meant to be for him to return he will. he eventually did find me.
when i returned home dh had a job offer and i jumped on the idea, location fly in totally remote isolated community of 75 families.

I lost DS1 aged 2 in B&Q when I was heavily pregnant and suffering with SPD. He suddenly ran off down an isle and I couldn’t chase him. I was with my mum who had just had chemo. He disappeared and didn’t respond to us shouting his name. We found him after the longest 5 minutes hiding in a show kitchen cupboard unit very pleased with himself.

Just remembered, lost the same DS in Peppa Pig World aged 4. He went into the toilet with DH and suddenly ran out. DH thought he had run out to me but I was changing DS2. We were running around shouting for him for about 10mins, I was imagining him being taken out of the park when we found him hiding in DS2’s pram in the buggy park with the hood down and a blanket over him. I have never felt so scared or sick.

Meant to say - thanks so much for this suggestion i'm googling now!

Lost mine on a busy beach once and some wonderful citizen had taken him to the lifeguard Tower.

Also have witnessed a mum in panic doing the loud looking, it's not a bad idea, especially in adventure playgrounds, older children can shimmy up a tree house and shout back quicker than adults

My palms went sweaty just reading this. Absolutely terrifying!

Of course you’re not a terrible mum as he was safe but perhaps have a think about what you’d do of that ever happened again as running about screaming probably isn’t helpful. So a plan like - shout what he’s wearing, speak to person in charge etc etc