'Silence': Aussie mum reveals the shocking way other parents reacted when she lost her three-year-old daughter at busy playground
Dani Smith used to judge other parents who lost their children in public spaces and never thought the terrifying experience would happen to her.
However, when her daughter went missing at a local playground one day she was met with a cold-shouldered reaction from her fellow mums - leaving her shocked and hurt.
Dani took her daughters, aged one and three, to the playground on a warm, sunny day, where her youngest began making a fuss in the pram.
The playground was fenced off, so Dani let her three-year-old run off excitedly while she comforted the unsettled baby.
"When I looked up from the pram, I could no longer see my three-year-old," Dani told Kidspot on Friday.
"At first, I calmly looked around the playground and checked to see if she was at the top of the slide.
"I called out to her several times, but she didn't answer or come back to me. My baby stopped crying, probably curious as to why I was shouting."
Dani then began panicking furiously and was faced with all sorts of confronting, racing thoughts, from her daughter possibly being kidnapped to having escaped the playground by crawling under the fence.
It was every parent's worst nightmare: One minute her daughter was there, the next she was gone.
While she screamed the three-year-old's name, Dani said she noticed other parents "just stood around chatting to each other."
Frustrated, she said she asked some of them, "Have you seen my daughter?" to which they replied, "No, sorry", and continued chatting.
Dani assumed the other mums probably just thought her toddler was playing a game of hide and seek, when in fact it was the opposite.
She said she continued asking more parents if they would assist in the search, only to be met with "radio silence".
Dani eventually found her daughter hiding in the bushes with a big smile, totally unaware of the ordeal that had just unfolded.
She immediately gathered her infant and left the playground with both children in tow, but said she will never forget that day.
Reflecting, Dani said the other parents must have assumed the situation wasn't dire.
She said maybe if they had known what was going through her mind, they would have helped.
Dani said when she shared her experience with her other mums who lost their children momentarily, some said they were also met with a cold shoulder, but most of the time, strangers helped them find their lost child.
Now, Dani said she will never judge another parent for losing their son or daughter and will offer her help, knowing just how easily it can happen.
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