Jail For Cruel Mum
April 10th 2008 08:07
I was stunned this week to read of a single mum in the UK who deliberately tricked her doctors into thinking her son was wheel chair bound.
Her son, now 11, was kept in a wheel chair for 5 years with the mother telling doctors he suffered fits, could not walk and needed medication.
The doctors only learned of the truth when the mother accidently overdosed his medicine.
She admitted in court to lying about her sons condition as she was worried he would eventually become independant and leave home.
The boy is now in care.
As a fellow single parent I do understand her motivation but cannot condone her method of dealing with her fear of desertion.
Many times I have reflected on what my life will be like when my daughter does leave home, and it is a mixture of excitement and sadness.
I am excited to see the person I have created and guided into adulthood and her happiness and success will my happiness. I will be happy to see the freedom and experiences she will embrace. I feel some sadness though as I worry about what my life will be like then.
I guess that is why I have started to think of the future in terms of career and making and maintaining solid friendships, not to mention the travel I would like to do and I may get to have my bed to myself!
I wonder then how much of this mothers desperation was due to a depression and why she was not in treatment or her behaviour picked up earlier? I already feel the role of a single parent is undermined in our society as far as community support and understanding. It is a very tough job and very isolating if you choose to do the right thing and make your kids your main priority. I have been fortunate enough to go to the GP and be open enough to discuss how I am really feeling and have depression picked up and treated.
Me personally, I have next to no social life and if I do, it involves my daughter who needs to be entertained and in bed by a certain time, still pretty stressful and limited ME time.
It is extremely important we have some ME time or ME outlet but keep our priorities in perspectives. The financial restrictions and time restrictions are limiting, but by being resourceful it is possible.
For me personally, escaping into a book or dvd can save my sanity and I do plan to get back into pilates and yoga again - it makes me feel good, as does chatting to my friends/family when I can.
It is very easy for an outsider to pass judgements and dictate how we should be, but unless you walk in our shoes, it is very hard to relate.
All single parents who are doing it and doing it tough deserve a big pat on the back and need more encouragement and support. The financial, emotional and physical stress we are under is uncomprehendable to those outside the circle.
Big hugs to all single mums/dads out there.
Her son, now 11, was kept in a wheel chair for 5 years with the mother telling doctors he suffered fits, could not walk and needed medication.
The doctors only learned of the truth when the mother accidently overdosed his medicine.
She admitted in court to lying about her sons condition as she was worried he would eventually become independant and leave home.
The boy is now in care.
As a fellow single parent I do understand her motivation but cannot condone her method of dealing with her fear of desertion.
Many times I have reflected on what my life will be like when my daughter does leave home, and it is a mixture of excitement and sadness.
I am excited to see the person I have created and guided into adulthood and her happiness and success will my happiness. I will be happy to see the freedom and experiences she will embrace. I feel some sadness though as I worry about what my life will be like then.
I guess that is why I have started to think of the future in terms of career and making and maintaining solid friendships, not to mention the travel I would like to do and I may get to have my bed to myself!
I wonder then how much of this mothers desperation was due to a depression and why she was not in treatment or her behaviour picked up earlier? I already feel the role of a single parent is undermined in our society as far as community support and understanding. It is a very tough job and very isolating if you choose to do the right thing and make your kids your main priority. I have been fortunate enough to go to the GP and be open enough to discuss how I am really feeling and have depression picked up and treated.
Me personally, I have next to no social life and if I do, it involves my daughter who needs to be entertained and in bed by a certain time, still pretty stressful and limited ME time.
It is extremely important we have some ME time or ME outlet but keep our priorities in perspectives. The financial restrictions and time restrictions are limiting, but by being resourceful it is possible.
For me personally, escaping into a book or dvd can save my sanity and I do plan to get back into pilates and yoga again - it makes me feel good, as does chatting to my friends/family when I can.
It is very easy for an outsider to pass judgements and dictate how we should be, but unless you walk in our shoes, it is very hard to relate.
All single parents who are doing it and doing it tough deserve a big pat on the back and need more encouragement and support. The financial, emotional and physical stress we are under is uncomprehendable to those outside the circle.
Big hugs to all single mums/dads out there.
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Comment by the world of gaye
batty
Family Madness
bright lights greedy city
REFLECTIONS
THE WINDMILLS OF MY MIND
Comment by frogwellprincess
Have done what we think is right, but....
frogwellprincess
A Single Parent
Oh, how to master `Dirty Talk'
When forgiveness is a two way street
When will Child Support get their act together......
Some very interesting points you have raised. I guess what drew my interest to this case was it is very hard for me to understand how a parent could be so selfish and harm her child so much. Clearly there is something mentally unstable or some condition, it is uncomprehendable to me.
I do the best I can with no support from family or the other parent and have made great friends through work and strive to make my daughter number one. I often wonder though how people cope with more than one child or without the mental strengths I seem to have?
I have often wondered how women coped back in the times when there was no social or financial support at all and how amazing those men and women were.
There are also alot of people out there that do a sloppy parenting job and shouldn't have had children. I wonder how much of the `but I love my children' is more related to the financial and welfare supports they would lose.
Kids should always be our number one, but like I said, it can be hard.