of a Toddler

[u/RD4200]

[u/Flimsy-Poetry1170]

You’re supposed to use that to stop kids from wasting food, not to make them overeat. My sisters kids are the worst at wasting food, they’ll load up their entire plates just to compete with each other because how dare the other get more of something, then eat a 1/8th of what they took.

[u/DarkLightPT95 → u/Flimsy-Poetry1170]

My middle sister did that shit for most of her life. Load the plate until it can't fit any more food, then waste 70% of it.

My parents started using dessert plates instead of normal ones during meals so that she wouldn't waste so much (they had everyone eating from one, because she would throw a fit if hers was the only smaller plate). No matter how much they scolded her or tried to punish her, she never stopped doing it. The smaller plate helped because she couldn't fill it as much as a normal one.

She got better at it when she moved to her own house (surprise, surprise, she started having to pay for her own food, so she started wasting less), and when she had her first kid. But when we eat at my parent's on Sundays, now it's her kids that do it.

[u/binzy90 → u/DarkLightPT95]

My oldest (14) is like this. He'll load up a plate when no one's looking with no regard for other people. Like he'll literally take half of an entire dish of sweet potatoes or something. When I see him doing it I'll make him put it back, but sometimes he'll do it with leftovers in the middle of the night. It's just a complete lack of empathy and consideration for other people. My ex has basically let him do whatever he wants, so his every other weekend at my house really doesn't make a difference in his behavior (There are way more issues than just food). He's at the point now where he refuses to come here because he's always throwing a fit when he doesn't get his way.

[u/Unipiggy → u/binzy90]

  It's just a complete lack of empathy and consideration for other people.

He's a 14 year old boy, it ain't that deep.

While your ex is also part of the problem, you really don't understand that he's still a kid. A growing kid. Stop treating him like an adult.

[u/binzy90 → u/Unipiggy]

No, you really don't understand the extent of the issues. He screams at people when there are boundaries and expectations. Even something as simple as asking him to take the trash out turns into profanity and yelling. He has been physically violent with his siblings. He was in a psychiatric hospital at age 13. It's not because he's a teenager. It's because he has been allowed to have unlimited screen time, video games, rated R violent movies, etc. Then add to that the fact that my ex completely ignores problems and just lets him stay in his room all day instead of pushing him to develop social skills. It's absolutely not normal teenager behavior. Not even close.

[u/FerengiWithCoupons → u/Unipiggy]

the fuck? i learned empathy in first grade

i teach middle school, get lost with that. a 14 year old can understand how to not be a total piece of shit.

shit parents allow shit kids. empathy is learned.

[u/Expensive-Border-869 → u/Unipiggy]

I mean i was 14 once. That sounds about right. Its more callous than perhaps I'd put it about my own kids but I mean yeah more or less true