Surely we’ve all heard of older folks who are always criticizing newer generations for their antics. Whether it’s because everyone now has mental illnesses, or allergies, or because some choose to be vegetarian… it doesn’t really matter, they’ll find some ammo to criticize the youth.
But it gets to a point where criticism can turn into acting against someone’s wishes, and we’ve seen plenty of horror stories of people forcibly feeding others something they’re not supposed to eat just to prove a point. Today’s story is, unfortunately, one of those cases where what began as a wholesome family moment quickly turned into a nightmare for an entire family.
Read more: Reddit
We may not agree or understand, but we should always respect other people when they talk about food restrictions
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While that should be a normal moral compass, a woman's mother-in-law never truly respected her granddaughter's food allergies
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Despite being incredibly doting towards her grandkid, she decided she wanted to test her allergies herself by making her peanut butter and banana cookies
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Once the grandma was alone with the toddler, she gave her a cookie, and the three-year-old had a severe allergic reaction
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They ended up needing to take her to the ER, and eventually discovered the grandma's ploy to give the child "allergen laced cookies," which led to a report from the hospital
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The couple eventually cut off contact with the mother-in-law after she continuously harassed them through voice mails and phone calls
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The husband's family believes the parents should be more understanding towards the grandma, who was going through a hard time
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The woman ended up violating her restraining order and was charged with child endangerment, after which the couple decided to officially move away from her
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Thankfully, the kid's health recovered, but they all had to move to be able to escape the mother-in-law's meltdowns
The story comes from the point of view of the Original Poster (OP), a concerned and frankly baffled mother who had to take preventative measures against her own mother-in-law (MIL). In this update-heavy story, she explains that her daughter has several severe food allergies, most notably to peanuts and eggs, but also to dairy and bananas. Her MIL, however, believes they’re overreacting.
Although the OP is aware of this and tries to avoid leaving her daughter alone with the MIL, there was one occasion when she said she really needed a nap and asked the older woman to keep an eye on the toddler for an hour. Not long after, she heard shrieking, and her three-year-old was having a severe allergic reaction. It turned out that the grandmother had fed her a peanut butter and banana cookie.
The child ended up in the hospital and, thankfully, was fine. However, they later discovered that the MIL had wanted to prove the allergies weren’t real and had deliberately made a batch of cookies to try to feed the child at some point. After this, the hospital reported the MIL, and a restraining order was eventually filed against her, as she wouldn’t stop calling and trying to see the child afterward.
After incessant phone calls, threats, and even stalking, the couple eventually had to move to another state to avoid the MIL, who had gone into full stalking mode. In the end, they had to go completely no-contact with her, and the police had to get involved once more after she violated the restraining order. Both the child and the OP’s husband ended up going to therapy as a result of the situation.
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The woman could easily be charged with attempting to harm her grandchild, given that she knowingly fed her allergens. But why would she do this in the first place? Well, psychologists explain that cognitive dissonance happens when two conflicting beliefs (in this case, the idea that she knows best, and a lack of understanding or acceptance of allergies) exist, which led people to act irrationally to resolve it.
And yes, allergies can, in some cases, be “retrained,” but only under the supervision of a medical professional, not by a grandmother at home. According to health professionals, oral immunotherapy is a form of exposure therapy that involves the consumption of very small, carefully controlled amounts of an allergen to reduce the risk of a life-threatening reaction, which the OP says her kid is doing.
The parents, essentially, did what they believed was best for their child, but the woman eventually even discovered where they lived. According to legal experts, violating a restraining order can lead to immediate arrest, followed by jail time and a permanent criminal record. Since the woman had already done so and was only given a “slap on the wrist,” any other violations would likely end up in severe consequences.
Or at least, that’s what netizens were hoping for. In the many updates, online comments showed just how baffled people were by the situation. The parents did everything they could to keep their child away from the MIL, but not even moving cities seemed to work. So, what would you have done? Would you have also cut the woman off, or simply maintained strictly monitored contact?
Netizens were absolutely stunned by the situation and the grandma's irresponsibility
