Child Care: A Mother’s Experience
Child Care Guide
Leaving your child for the first time in the care of others can be a distressing time for a mother, especially so if your child is unhappy and doesn’t want to be left.
My personal experience of this was when my first born was old enough to start nursery, I had been lucky enough not to have to go out to work during my child’s early years and despite advice from others around me had declined to even leave him for a few hours at a toddler group.
This in hindsight was a huge mistake as when the morning came to start nursery he didn’t want to go, he cried from leaving the house to arriving there and we were given time to take off their coats and were advised to wait around for a few minutes while the children got settled.
After a little persuasion he left my side and sat on the carpet with the others and I sighed a sigh of relief. This however was short lived when the nursery teachers asked the children to wave and tell us they would see us very soon, he came running crying back into my arms hugging me.
Mine wasn’t the only child to cry a couple of others did too but most quickly ran to play with all the new toys which were on offer and the mothers were soon forgotten. One by one the children left their parents side with a little encouragement from the staff but my son clung to me for dear life and sobbed and cried.
The staff was amazing and did everything they could to coax him away and eventually still sobbing he did leave my side looking back at me with a little tear stained face, but the staff were very understanding not only to my child’s needs but also to mine.
It’s so hard to try and describe to anyone that hasn’t gone through it how a mother feels in a situation such as this, a part of them wants to hug the child and take them right back home with them but another part knows that this is what the child needs and you have to do what is right even if your heart is aching.
Not only was my child in tears but also at any minute I could feel them bubbling up inside of me ready to spill, the staff understood this and one of them came and put an arm around my shoulders and lead me to the kitchen area where they told me to take all the time I needed and made me a drink along with handing me tissues.
The member of staff assured me that was I was feeling and what my child was feeling was a normal healthy reaction to being separated and that I could stay in the nursery as long as I needed to until I felt at ease with leaving my son or I could slip out while he was pre-occupied.
It was then that we realised the crying had stopped and the member of staff poked her head around the door and beckoned me to look, there he was laughing and smiling playing happily in the sandpit with other children.
There were smiles all around and my heart didn’t feel as heavy walking away from him that day but I missed him so much when I got home to an empty house.
Finding the right carer or nursery for your child is important but don’t only take into account things from the safety and health point of view or how many qualifications they have, these things are important but other qualities are just as essential, such as leaving your child with someone you know really cares not only about your child but also the mother too.
