As a parent, leaving your child in someone else’s care can be extremely nerve-racking. Moms and dads always want to be sure that every babysitter, teacher and family member who looks over their little ones takes the best care of them that they possibly can.

But unfortunately, parents can’t protect their children from everything. And one mother who has been living through the nightmare of realizing her daughter was harmed at daycare has shared her story online. Below, you’ll find all of the heartbreaking details, as well as a conversation between the mom and Bored Panda.

This mom was horrified to find out that her daughter had been harmed at daycare

Image credits: Tatiana Syrikova / pexels (not the actual photo)

Now, she’s being threatened with legal action for publicly telling her story online

Image credits:  BBC Creative / unsplash (not the actual photo)

Image credits:  Gaelle Marcel / unsplash (not the actual photo)

Image credits: Oddlyy-Strange

“Everyone involved dismissed the gravity of the situation”

As heartbreaking as this situation is, it is unfortunately not an isolated issue. According to Darkness to Light, a shocking 2,237 daycare providers were found to be abusing and neglecting children in the United States in 2017. And it’s not a problem that will go away without parents speaking up.

To find out more about this situation, we reached out to the mother who shared her story online, Reddit user Oddlyy-Strange. She was kind enough to have a chat with Bored Panda and explain what inspired her to make this post. 

“I shared it on Reddit because everyone involved dismissed the gravity of the situation,” the mom said. “As time passes, my daughter still struggles. We can’t even say the word ‘school’ or pass by the main street that leads to that daycare.”

“One of the ex-staff members is my friend, and when she comes to visit, my daughter tells her with the few words she can say, ‘don’t take me,’” Oddlyy-Strange continued. “My daughter is more verbal, but she has Gestalt language processing, meaning she memorizes scripts or sentences instead of words. [She is] working to cut off the words, but I still can’t get elaborate answers from her other than yes and no.”

“It’s the last thing you want to believe, especially from a daycare with glowing reviews”

Image credits: Erika Fletcher / unsplash (not the actual photo)

The mom noted that part of the reason she shared this post was to make sure she wasn’t crazy, and to “understand how horrible it is that this daycare is still practicing horrible things and deleting reviews actively.” 

Apparently, the daycare has since been on a mission to eliminate all negative reviews. “I checked, and it seemed they kept reporting the review until they took it down, along with other bad reviews. I don’t know why it’s possible, but I am going to take it down and find other ways to warn others. Somehow,” the mother said. 

We also asked the parent if she had connected with other parents whose children had experienced similar trauma at the daycare. “We got in touch with many parents and many staff members,” she told Bored Panda. “Some parents need their job and do not have alternative methods of daycare.”

“And I think some are in denial, because they see a lot of bruises without explanation,” Oddlyy-Strange continued. “I was in that position months before, when I found bruises on my daughter like fingerprints. But it’s the last thing you want to believe, especially from a daycare with glowing reviews backed by a religious institution.”

As far as what the concerned mother thought of the replies to her post, she shared that they were very helpful. “I learned a lot and almost got the courage to continue fighting,” she shared. “It made me feel so much better to know that I wasn’t alone, and I wasn’t going crazy. I got helpful tips through messages too, and heard lots of shared experiences. I wish I could fight it off. And I wish the media agreed to publish my story and others, but they have been unresponsive.”

“Kids are very precious and delicate; there should be a million ways to check if someone is fit to look after the most precious thing in a parent’s life”

But as difficult as this entire experience has been, the mom is grateful for the opportunity to spread awareness and hopefully protect children from future harm. “I wanted to thank you for putting this story up. Although I couldn’t and can’t say the name, I hope that they will be exposed and stop hurting kids. And hopefully this deters any other daycares from doing this to kids.”

“Kids are very precious and delicate; there should be a million ways to check if someone is fit to look after the most precious thing in a parent’s life,” the mother added. “There should be no shortcuts, and no parent should be silenced for telling what happened.”

“I wish there was a happy ending. I was hoping there would be,” she continued. “The head office of this daycare was proudly advertising starting a franchise for anyone without experience, and this was the result: cheap labor and no required experience, desperation and high turnover and breaking so many rules.”

“It hurts me that this is the world I am bringing my daughter into,” Oddlyy-Strange added. “A world that dismisses her rights and does not protect her against abuse because she can’t verbalize it.”

If you know a child who is in an unsafe situation, please don’t hesitate to reach out for help. 

Concerned readers shared sympathy for the mother and provided advice for how to go about getting justice

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