Mind your own business

Is it ever ok to discipline someone else's child? At first it might appear as though the answer is a black and white - yes or no answer, but it is not that simple. Have you ever been out and you see another family and they have one child who just seems to be out of control, screaming, shouting abuse at their parents. Now I won't lie, before I had children I would be thinking shut your kid up, control them. Yet in my current position I definitely sympathise with parents more. There may be more to the story than the picture you see before you. To some people it might appear as though the child is very rude and has no discipline, the parents might seem unbothered by the child's behaviour. However now as a parent myself I have found myself in situations where your child might be pulling on your last nerve, and you refuse to lose control or start shouting in public. So you take the approach of ignoring them instead, and yes  this might be to the discomfort of others. Those judgemental eyes on you don't help either.



I also take into consideration that some children, such as my own, may have a disability so my interference may cause more harm then good. It is hard to distinguish whether a parent/guardian is in need of assistance or if they want to be left alone. What situation would make you think that it's ok for you to discipline another's child?

I was once put in such a situation, I was at a kid's party and I was hosting the games. During one of the games the winner was picked via a process of elimination. The runner up was not too pleased! She came right up to me and expressed rudely that she should not have been eliminated. Calmly I  explained to her the game was over and that she could try again in the next game. She was still not happy. At the time I was about 6 months pregnant with my 3rd child. The child lunged at me and went to hit my belly, so I had to restrain her. Was I right to do so?  Her mother was not in the room at the time, I told the young girl that this was not the way to deal with things, she was not the only person to be eliminated and this did not justify her trying to hurt me. She then run and told her mother her version of the story. Her Mum came over and told me what her daughter had told her which was that I shouted at her. I explained what happened to her mother and thankfully her mother was understanding.  She spoke to her daughter and told her what she had done was wrong. In that situation I felt as though I had no choice but to discipline this child.

I understand that all parents have their own parenting techniques,and our approaches are all different. However in my opinion I don't  like it when parents do not discipline at all. For instance once when I was at a train station, a child kept spitting and the parent said absolutely nothing. The closer that spit got to me the more agitated I got ,I wondered what was going through this parents mind that they were not saying anything and just watching. When that child opened their mouth to spit at me, I told him off. The parent just looked away. I couldnt understand why they did nothing, so I want to encourage all parents out there to speak up. To all fellow parents please let us not be so judgmental but instead let us work together. If you need help, let someone know, if someone else thinks they are helping but actually you don't need their help then it's ok to say 'Please mind you own business'.

So is it ever ok to discipline someone else's child? Who knows! You might try to help and it could be appreciated. On the other hand you might be told 'thanks but no thanks'. In any situation try your best to be supportive because it's hard enough being a parent, let alone when your child is throwing a tantrum in front of an audience.

Guardians of the precious- Here to support you, so you may support your precious.