Horrible parenting rears it's ugly head again.

[HappyMommy2]

How terrible that she abandoned her own child! However, I am so glad that she apparently didn't physically harm her little girl, and that she didn't leave her somewhere where she could get lost or hurt.

I am embarrassed to admit that I have had moments when I "just can't take it anymore" with my two very rambunctious little boys. Of COURSE I have never physically or emotionally hurt them, but there have been a few times that I have just had to ask a friend to watch them for an hour so I could go for a walk and get my head screwed back on right (especially when DH is deployed and I am raising them on my own). It looks like the woman in this case didn't have a support system like that--as a parent you really do need some kind of safe, non-damaging release valve and for whatever reason she obviously didn't have a good one so she did what she thought she had to do to avoid doing something worse.

I'm not excusing this woman's behavior at all--there are resources available (child abuse hotlines, churches, etc.) that could have given her the help she needed, without her having to abandon the child. Those resources are fairly well publicized and she should have used them! I hope the system will be able to judge correctly whether or not this woman is competent to regain custody of her child after she goes through whatever punishment/treatment is deemed appropriate for her. How horrible it would be for something worse to happen to this little girl down the line.

 

[RitaZ.]

Originally posted by DemonLlama
Just to weigh in with a differing opinion:

Problems with mental health are not excuses. And post-partum depression is only one of many, many brain disorders that can affect a person. The brain is far more complicated than the body, and we are racing to keep up with understanding many of its malfunctions.

If this woman had been slowly dying from terrible degenerative disease and in desperation (without being able to think clearly or logically about reaching out for help) left her child in a place where someone else could care for her, we would not have the same reaction, nor would we decry the ability for the woman to get her child back if she was able to find a cure for her disease.

She's a human being and a mother obviously at the end of her rope. I feel badly for her, and for her child who must be very frightened by the odd behavior of her mommy. I'm glad she will have some stability and care but I also hope the mom can get the help she needs, too.

Very well said, Llama!

There are many women out there that choose to keep their children with them only to expose them to a life of neglect and abuse, or to even murder them. This is obviously not the best situation for that poor little girl, but it's better than the other alternatives.

When a person is suffering from mental illness, being aware of all the "well publicized resources" available to them isn't on top of their list. This is one misconception that people need to challenge once and for all about mental illness; thinking rationally isn't part of mental illness.