Woman's Fiancé Calls Her A 'Horrible Mom' After She Left Their Babies Inside Alone So She Could 'Take A Breather'
The new mom's fiancé came home to find her sitting outside their door while the three 2-month-olds cried inside.
Digitalskillet / Shutterstock Being a new mom is exhausting and can be overwhelming. The stress is amplified when you have more than one little one to care for, as one new mother of triplets found out the hard way.
Luckily, she found a way to cope with the stress — a tactic that her fiancé eventually called her a "horrible mom" for.
The new mom is the lone caretaker of three 2-month-olds during the day.
Like most new moms, the 20-year-old woman eventually recognized her need for a break here and there, especially when the babies cry inconsolably.
“I find myself getting super frustrated to the point of tears," she wrote in a Reddit post. "It's honestly so hard and the dad isn't here to help as he's either at work or at school.”
She noted that because her family lives in a main-floor apartment, when she decides to step outside for some fresh air, she’s limited to sitting in a chair near the front door. As a precaution, she has a baby monitor with a camera in the little ones’ room, enabling her to keep an eye on them and get to them in case of an emergency.
While she doesn't go far, she explained that "Being able to step outside for a few minutes to take a breather is really important to me because I start to have mini panic attacks when I can't get them to stop crying and I get really frustrated because I just feel super overwhelmed, Being able to go outside just gives me a chance to [calm] down."
However, one day her fiancé came home to find her sitting outside the front door while the babies cried and “freaked out.”
The young lady’s fiancé accused her of being neglectful and of putting the kids’ safety at risk, and called her a "horrible mom." He went as far as telling her future in-laws, causing them, too, to turn on her.
Though hurt by their reactions, the woman reasserted, “I really don't think I was doing anything wrong or putting my babies in harm’s way but they seem to think otherwise.”
Moms (and dads) need to take care of their own well-being if they want to be good parents to their kids.
Parental burnout is real, and can easily become compounded when taking care of three newborns for so many hours of the day alone. Letting the symptoms of parental burnout go unchecked can eventually damage your relationship with your children.
This is why WebMD notes how important it is for parents to prioritize self-care, including taking some time for themselves, like this mom did.
"When I had my baby one of the things the nurses told me repetitively while in the hospital and during the home visits is that if she is crying and I know she has been fed, she has a clean nappy on and she isn't sick, and I am getting stressed out its ok to go outside for a few minutes to just recollect myself," one person wrote in the comments in support.
The mom noted that her fiancé eventually apologized.
Becoming a first-time parent is anything but easy, especially when you have three newborns at once and both parents are still in school. While her husband's reaction may seem cruel, it's likely that he's also dealing with the stress of it all and, upon just returning home, may not have been fully aware of the situation.
The distraught mother eventually updated readers, saying, “I decided to show my fiancé this thread. At first, he was really upset with me for sharing our personal problems with strangers on the internet, even though it's anonymous.” However, she noted he finally came to his senses.
“In the end when he had a chance to calm down and hear me and all of you guys out. He actually apologized and promised me he'd be more involved with parenting and even is willing to take parenting classes, which I'll hold him to that," she wrote. "I just wanna thank everyone for the support.”
NyRee Ausler is a writer from Seattle, Washington, and author of seven books. She covers lifestyle and entertainment and news, as well as navigating the workplace and social issues.