A mom is getting real on TikTok about how hard it is to be a parent to a special needs child.
"POV: You're a special needs mom," the mom (whose username is stoneypag3) wrote on the TikTok video.
"I just need to express myself rn im sorry for this manic episode," the mom said.
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Burnout is a real thing, and it's clear this mom is experiencing it
The video is only a minute long, but it really does capture a mom who is at the end of her rope trying to keep everything together for her kids.
"Okay, having a kid with special [expletive] needs IS NOT FOR THE WEAK," she yells as soon as the video starts.
Then she holds up the plastic wrapping that would normally hold a giant pack of water bottles.
"Why 40 bottles of [expletive] water gone?" she asks.
"Because he didn’t want to open the same [expletive] bottle and drink his backwash," she explains.
Her tirade is a powerful testament to what it's like for special needs parents
She then grabs a pair of her son's broken shoes to show as another example.
"Why are your flops broken from you flipping them up in the [expletive] air, catching them, and smashing them on the ground? Or scooting your [expletive] feet up all the way to the edge of the [expletive] surface and popping them," she says in the video.
After throwing the shoes, she gets closer to the camera and is incredibly honest and vulnerable.
"I love my son"
"My ponytail's coming off, that's how stressed I am," she says.
It's clear that even though she loves her son, she also doesn't get a break from being his primary caregiver, and it's taking a toll.
"I'M HAVING ONE OF THOSE MOMENTS!" she repeats several times, becoming increasingly more frustrated until she's banging on the counter.
People's reactions were quite affirming and reassuring
The next day, she posted a follow-up video where she and her three sons are watching her meltdown. Her son with special needs, whom she calls Tinky, is there watching his mom react.
"Tinky doesn’t have any social [cues], so when he’s guilty of something he’ll give the evil underbrow eye look," she wrote on the video.
People's reactions to both videos were incredibly affirming.
"We all get like this baby! I imagine you probably helped many other women feel seen and validated. Feel your feelings baby," someone wrote.
"finally someone being real! I have 2 son's with special needs autistic & ADHD. It's nice to know your not alone, these moments are so real," another person said.
