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Woman Infuriates Her Parents By Not Going On A 10-Hour Flight So They Can See Their Grandbaby
Whether choosing a vacation abroad or going on a business trip, for some people, flying is a frequent occurrence. Reddit user Kthrowaway244‘s parents live overseas so she also isn’t a newbie to the experience.
However, after she and her husband had their first baby, the woman made up her mind not to take the little boy to meet her folks. Even though they really wanted to see their grandson in person, she thought the journey would be too much for her to handle.
The new grandparents were very unhappy to hear this. They started accusing their daughter of being disrespectful and turned against her. She started having doubts about her decision and made a post on the subreddit ‘Am I the [Jerk]?‘ asking the community to help her make sense of the whole ordeal.
RELATED:
This woman has just given birth to her first child, and her parents really want to meet their grandson
Image credits: westend61 (not the actual photo)
But they live overseas, and the woman doesn’t want to take a long flight with a newborn
Her parents believe the woman is being disrespectful
Image credits: Ashwin Vaswani (not the actual photo)
Image source: kthrowaway244
Even if the woman’s son would be the calmest baby in the world, there’s still the aspect of his health
While it is technically OK for babies to fly just a few days after they’re born, doctors generally discourage this. Air travel increases a newborn’s risk of catching an infectious disease, and babies born prematurely, with chronic heart or lung problems, or with upper or lower respiratory symptoms may also have problems with the change in oxygen level within the air cabin.
But “Around 3 to 6 months can be a good time to fly,” Mollie Greves Grow, MD, MPH, a pediatrician at Seattle Children’s Hospital, told Verywell Family. “This is after they have started or completed the primary immunization series and after the worst of fussiness/colic has passed, which usually peaks around six weeks.”
The vaccines, however, aren’t the end-all-be-all for why babies should fly after a certain age. “As a general rule, I advise against air travel under 2 months of age unless it is absolutely necessary,” pediatrician Gary Kramer, MD, PA, told the same outlet. “The reason has nothing to do with the first vaccines but rather with the consequence that any infant below that age developing a fever will require a complete emergency evaluation for infection.”
This is especially concerning while flying because there are many people packed into a small, contained space. While airplane air is very clean—Boeing compares the air in its airplanes to hospital air—that doesn’t account for the other parts of airplane travel, like hired cars, public transportation, and the airport itself, where babies can pick up germs that could make them sick.
It’s hard to judge the woman for prioritizing her baby’s well-being and comfort (as well as her own), and, after all, she did offer to pay for her parents’ tickets. Sometimes it’s truly hard to understand if a person is fighting for their values or is just having an ego trip.
As her post went viral, the woman provided more information in its comment section
After reading her story, the overwhelming majority of people thought she did nothing wrong in this situation
What do you think ?
Panda Kicki 2 years ago
I think it is a win win that the racist, toxic parent dont get to spread their hate to a new generation when they cut ties with the poor daughter. She must have been really strong to break loose. Amd dont bring a kid to a country that treats it poorly due to race!
Boredest Disabled Panda 2 years ago
It honestly doesn't sound like much of a loss if this results in a rift. It sounds like they barely get along anyway. Her parents are manipulative and racist. I am not sure I would even want my child to be around them if I were her.
Glenn Schroeder 2 years ago
As a proud grandparent to three children, aged 4 months to 6 years, it's difficult to understand how these people won't move heaven and earth to see this little boy.
Ron Baza 2 years ago
“Selfish, toxic, racist stupidity” is hard to sympathise with. Here’s hoping that they never meet their grandchild and die both sad and filled with a combination of regret and self-loathing.
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𝐆𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐦-𝐏𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚 2 years ago
Honestly? This sounds to me like a plot on the part of her parents. They want to get her and the baby to *their* country, where they can control her, separate her from her husband, probably "vanish" her passport, and then force her to accept a relationship with a man of their choice and trap her in the country. (They were still trying to get her to talk to religious people and other men even after she was married, before the baby was born, so there's no doubt they don't care about her current marital status.) And if they manage to trap her, and force her into a different marriage, she'd also never see her baby again. If that country hates other races, there's no way any "new husband" they pick is going to let her keep a bi-racial baby. And then who knows what will happen to the baby? This situation sounds incredibly dangerous for her whole family. She should never set foot in that country again. Probably not even with her husband.
Patty Panda 2 years ago
Agree - it does sound dangerous for OP's entire family
Load More Replies...
Ivana Bašić 2 years ago
If someone puts their comfort before a tiny baby's, that's not much of a grandparent anyway. No loss.
LittleWombat 2 years ago
Grandmother could have traveled with the aunt or another family member or friend if grandfather didn't want to fly to come see the baby. Simple solution to the "I can't fly out alone" problem. Like everyone else said, it's a lack of motivation. When people want something bad enough, they find a way.
Elio 2 years ago
OP is doing the right thing. The baby doesn't want to be on the plane for 10 hours and the other passengers probably don't want to be on the plane with a fussy baby for 10 hours. Here we see a good example of hypocritical parents who expect their children to do everything to maintain the relationship. Double standard: OP offered to pay for her parents to visit, but it's "disrespectful" of her to ask. However, it is apparently not disrespectful of the parents to demand she get on a long plane ride with a young baby. My grandparents came to visit after I was born because you don't take newborns on planes (and they were in good health to travel and had money). In this case, the parents are so racist that OP had to keep her dating life a secret. Who knows what horrible stuff they might say to this baby as he gets older for being mixed-race?
Anne Nielsen 2 years ago
I was on a flight with a very distraught young baby 3-4 months old. The parents brought out a wonderful magic thing. It was a swaddle that was stretchy. The put it on the crying infant. In about 1 minute, the baby was calm and quiet. They took the baby out to diaper an let the baby stretch, then right back to the swaddle. I was amazed. I read up on how babies feel more secure (a womb-like experience). My daughter had a fussy child. They used the same swaddle. It worked like a charm. Babies flail their arms when upset. It is like their arms keep them upset. I had two children of my own. I wish I had known the swaddle magic trick when they were that little. It may be worth the try. Maybe your parents need adult swaddles too? Haha.
- 2 years ago
The swaddle sounds like a good tip. It needs to be tight so that the parents can't remove their gags, heheheh.
Load More Replies...
ispeak catanese 2 years ago
This one was tough to read. I hope she cuts the parents and aunt out of her life. Those people are horribly toxic.
Panda Kicki 2 years ago
I think it is a win win that the racist, toxic parent dont get to spread their hate to a new generation when they cut ties with the poor daughter. She must have been really strong to break loose. Amd dont bring a kid to a country that treats it poorly due to race!
Boredest Disabled Panda 2 years ago
It honestly doesn't sound like much of a loss if this results in a rift. It sounds like they barely get along anyway. Her parents are manipulative and racist. I am not sure I would even want my child to be around them if I were her.
Glenn Schroeder 2 years ago
As a proud grandparent to three children, aged 4 months to 6 years, it's difficult to understand how these people won't move heaven and earth to see this little boy.
Ron Baza 2 years ago
“Selfish, toxic, racist stupidity” is hard to sympathise with. Here’s hoping that they never meet their grandchild and die both sad and filled with a combination of regret and self-loathing.
Load More Replies... 𝐆𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐦-𝐏𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚 2 years ago
Honestly? This sounds to me like a plot on the part of her parents. They want to get her and the baby to *their* country, where they can control her, separate her from her husband, probably "vanish" her passport, and then force her to accept a relationship with a man of their choice and trap her in the country. (They were still trying to get her to talk to religious people and other men even after she was married, before the baby was born, so there's no doubt they don't care about her current marital status.) And if they manage to trap her, and force her into a different marriage, she'd also never see her baby again. If that country hates other races, there's no way any "new husband" they pick is going to let her keep a bi-racial baby. And then who knows what will happen to the baby? This situation sounds incredibly dangerous for her whole family. She should never set foot in that country again. Probably not even with her husband.
Patty Panda 2 years ago
Agree - it does sound dangerous for OP's entire family
Load More Replies... Ivana Bašić 2 years ago
If someone puts their comfort before a tiny baby's, that's not much of a grandparent anyway. No loss.
LittleWombat 2 years ago
Grandmother could have traveled with the aunt or another family member or friend if grandfather didn't want to fly to come see the baby. Simple solution to the "I can't fly out alone" problem. Like everyone else said, it's a lack of motivation. When people want something bad enough, they find a way.
Elio 2 years ago
OP is doing the right thing. The baby doesn't want to be on the plane for 10 hours and the other passengers probably don't want to be on the plane with a fussy baby for 10 hours. Here we see a good example of hypocritical parents who expect their children to do everything to maintain the relationship. Double standard: OP offered to pay for her parents to visit, but it's "disrespectful" of her to ask. However, it is apparently not disrespectful of the parents to demand she get on a long plane ride with a young baby. My grandparents came to visit after I was born because you don't take newborns on planes (and they were in good health to travel and had money). In this case, the parents are so racist that OP had to keep her dating life a secret. Who knows what horrible stuff they might say to this baby as he gets older for being mixed-race?
Anne Nielsen 2 years ago
I was on a flight with a very distraught young baby 3-4 months old. The parents brought out a wonderful magic thing. It was a swaddle that was stretchy. The put it on the crying infant. In about 1 minute, the baby was calm and quiet. They took the baby out to diaper an let the baby stretch, then right back to the swaddle. I was amazed. I read up on how babies feel more secure (a womb-like experience). My daughter had a fussy child. They used the same swaddle. It worked like a charm. Babies flail their arms when upset. It is like their arms keep them upset. I had two children of my own. I wish I had known the swaddle magic trick when they were that little. It may be worth the try. Maybe your parents need adult swaddles too? Haha.
- 2 years ago
The swaddle sounds like a good tip. It needs to be tight so that the parents can't remove their gags, heheheh.
Load More Replies... ispeak catanese 2 years ago
This one was tough to read. I hope she cuts the parents and aunt out of her life. Those people are horribly toxic.
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