My Mother-in-Law's Method of Dealing With My Toddler's Tantrums is Traumatizing

"My daughter "Melody" is in the midst of the terrible twos. Five or more meltdowns per day over normal frustrations/limits are typical. Recently, my mother-in-law, "Darlene" took Melody and my 6-year-old son out to run errands, and true to form, Melody had a blow-up. It was how Darlene handled it that has me seeing red. She told Melody that she was leaving her in the store and that she could find her own way home, and left her screaming on the floor!"

"She then moved off with my son, out of my daughter's view, and waited for several minutes before coming back for her. I only learned of this later when my son told me what happened. When I confronted my mother-in-law, she claimed her method was helpful because Melody behaved afterward. And she said Melody was "never in any danger" because she kept her in sight at all times."

A toddler named Melody experiences multiple daily meltdowns during the terrible twos. While running errands, the grandmother, Darlene, told Melody she would be left in the store and must find her own way home, left her screaming on the floor, then moved out of the child's view with the older sibling before returning. The grandmother defended the action by saying Melody behaved afterward and was never in danger because she remained in sight. The father supports the tactic as a family lesson. The recommended response is to end Darlene's solo time with the children unless she agrees to follow parental rules and boundaries.

Read at Slate Magazine