Latest / Moming and Me: The Podcast / Some of the Most Broken Homes I’ve Ever Seen Had Two Parents in Them
Transcript
- Najah: Can we stop calling every single parent household a broken home? Because baby. A broken home is not determined by how many adults are living in But a broken home is determined by the environment that a child is forced to grow up in. I've seen two parent households full of abuse. Full of screaming. Full of neglect. And where one parent is physically present but emotionally absent. There are two parent households where the child never feels seen, protected, supported, or loved. Now hold on, before you go saying kids need a father in the home. They need their mom. I understand the benefits of children having a healthy example of both. I understand the value of children seeing a loving, functional man. understand the value of a child seeing a living functional woman. I'm not arguing against any of that. What I'm saying is a home is not automatically broken because one of those people are not in And a home is not automatically healthy because both of them are. Because come on, let's be real. If one of the adults in a home is abusive, neglectful, unavailable, or creating chaos. The child still pays the price. Children just don't need bodies in a house. They need love. They need safety. They need support. They need consistency. They need people who are willing and able to care for them. Sometimes two parents. Sometimes that's one. sometimes that's bonus parents, grandparents, a mentor, village, or the entire community. We've seen incredible humans raised in all kinds of family structures. So maybe the conversation shouldn't be about how many adults live in a home. Maybe the conversation should be about whether the child is actually being loved, supported, protected, and cared for. While everybody is worried about a child growing up in a broken home. we really should be worried about the broken adults that had them. And sometimes removing the dysfunction isn't what breaks the home. It's what finally gives the child peace at home.