Single dad praised for teaching daughter about periods after ex slates him
A dad has shared how he was lambasted by his ex-partner for discussing periods with their daughter. Posting to an online forum, the single father explained that they share 50/50 custody. He said there are a couple of "sensitive topics" he and his daughter "still have difficulties talking about" but he tries his best. He also shared that his ex is "conservative and uptight" whereas he considers himself "liberal and laidback".
Recently he and his daughter discussed menstruation after watching the 2023 drama/comedy Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret, starring Rachel McAdams. The film is an adaptation of Judy Blume's novel of the same name, which is a coming-of-age story that discusses periods. Naturally, the father said his nine-year-old daughter had a lot of questions while they watched it.
"She loved it and couldn't wait to learn more. My opinion is that - regardless of the topic - a parent should never shy away from a question, and I always try to answer all questions, acknowledging that I don't know and I will look the answer up if that’s the case," he wrote on Reddit. "Given the nature of the topic, I explained to my daughter that her mum was probably better equipped to answer some specific questions (all the intimate, practical aspect for example - does it hurt, what to do and all that)."
He said everything went fine up until recently when he received a message from his ex, who he said was visibly furious that he watched the movie with their daughter. She said that she's the one who should be handling "those topics". The father added: "I know that this has a lot to do with 'power struggle' due to our separation. She's a very controlling person and she'll always find ways to try to oversee how I educate our daughter. My question is, was I wrong to watch that with my daughter and discuss it?"
The response to the post was heavily in the father's favour, saying he wasn't wrong for watching the film and discussing reproductive health with his daughter. Some people even shared their own experiences as a sign of support. "Divorced dad of a teen girl here. You're not wrong for all the reasons replied. I'll also add that we dads have to model for our daughters that periods aren't something they need to hide from men in some weird shameful way," a fellow father wrote.
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A different person commented: "Not wrong. I'm a woman with three boys. I'm still married to my kids' father, but we have had lots of conversations about sex, puberty, etc., both with dad and without. There is nothing wrong or shameful about kids talking to either parent about how their own body works." A third added: "Absolutely not wrong. Your daughter should be comfortable talking to you both about these sort of things."
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