A mom of three living in Houston, Texas, has gotten the internet fired up after she made good on her promise to physically discipline her daughter, who she says has oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), following a shocking incident involving her car.
The woman first laid out her plans in a now-viral video, where she appeared emotional while explaining why she was about to break her long-standing rule of not hitting her kids. According to her, she had asked one of her daughters to take her younger sibling’s book back to the car, but instead, the child smashed the back window. Whether it was intentional remains unclear, though the mother seemed to believe it was.
In the video, she admitted that she dropped her daughter off at school first because she was too furious in the moment. She then said she planned to go out and buy belts, even mentioning she was looking for ones “with some rhinestones on it.”
‘I’m Not a Bad Mom’
Based on the update she later shared, she did end up buying two belts, though it’s unclear if they had rhinestones, and said she gave her daughter four lashes “for the four different things that she did over the last couple of weeks.”
“I did not whoop her because I was angry with her,” the mother said. “I whipped her because I literally had no choice, period. Your decisions could have hurt somebody. It could have put glass in my other baby’s eyes.”
She also pushed back on the criticism she received, especially from people who said they would report her to child protective services. According to her, authorities are already familiar with her situation, and she insisted she is not abusive. “Me and child services, we are locked in. They know me. They know I’m not a bad mom. They know I’m very intentional when it comes to my daughters. I love my daughters more than anything ever in life,” she said.
The mom also shared part of a conversation she had with her daughter after the punishment, which showed her softer side. She encouraged her child to make better decisions and think through her actions, while also making it clear that discipline would remain an option. “I want that to be my last time ever using a belt,” she told her daughter. “I don’t ever wanna have to do that again. That was very hard… I wanna protect you. The last thing I wanna do is hurt you.”
Netizens’ Reactions to the Texas Mom’s Approach Were Divided
People online went back and forth on whether the woman took things too far or whether the discipline was justified. One critical comment read, “You abused her. Why are you okay with physically beating your daughter.” Another said, “You a disappointment you shouldve never had a kid [sic].” Someone else added, “This is so sad. I would never do this to my child. Mine will always be spoiled and given everything.”
At the same time, a number of people supported her decision and felt her approach to discipline was necessary. “This why gentle parenting will never work for me,” one person wrote. “Kids need to know boundaries and respect,” another added. “Holding your child accountable is the best thing you can do for your child! You did very good, you handled this very well 🦋,” a third commented.
A few others suggested more extreme alternatives, with one commenter saying, “Let her go to juvenile detention for being a [sic] unruly child.”
