A mum has opened up about her heartbreak after her eight-year-old daughter made a devastating confession.
Sharing on social media, the parent explained it happened while getting ready for bedtime as normal. She wrote: “I was putting her to bed and I said, ‘alright, beautiful, let’s go!’ And she replied ‘why do you call me that if I’m not beautiful’."
The mother explained she broke down in tears when she heard it. She went on: "We have always called her beautiful out of affection and she always seemed happy with herself.
“She’s about to start third grade. During this summer we’ve had her choose her own clothes for this next school year so she can start exploring her own sense of style. I shouldn’t have cried in front of her. But I couldn’t help it. It made me so sad to hear this from my little girl.”
After calming down, the mum asked her daughter why she felt like that and was stunned when she replied that she doesn’t like her “round and big” face. The mum went on: “I told her she’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. I also told her how happy she always made me as soon as I see her. She said she was sorry I was crying, which made me feel so lame for not handling this better [...] How could I help her boost her self-esteem?”
Other parents reading the Reddit post were heartbroken, and rushed to offer her words of comfort. One user replied: “I almost started crying with you, reading this. I would have the same reaction if my son ever said that to me. I have no advice except to just keep giving her a loving and supportive home and tell her every day that she's beautiful.”
Another person suggested: “Don't worry about the crying. It's a human reaction and contrary to belief kids need to see us being human. And see how we handle it when emotions get to us. It's how they learn to handle things.
“As for the statements she made. I would focus on the things she does love about herself, not trying to change her mind on what she doesn't. Praise things other than looks, but still tell her how pretty her eyes are, her smile, the way she wiggles her nose. Whatever it is you'd naturally say, just make sure you add in lots of non-physical things too. It helped my kid learn to love herself, especially when I began praising my own ‘flaws’.”
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