We all know that young children can be a handful sometimes, and it's not uncommon for toddlers to throw tantrums when they don't get their own way, as they're still learning how to regulate their emotions.
But one mum has been left horrified after seeing the way her own mother dealt with a tantrum her two-year-old daughter was having - as the grandma called her granddaughter "pathetic".
The woman explained her daughter "didn't want to get dressed" one morning and was "having a major meltdown" about it, although she insisted she and her husband "had it under control".
The little girl's grandma then decided to step in to try and "help", and when the toddler still refused to comply, the grandma "stormed out of the room".
In an anonymous post on Kidspot, the mum said: "My mum, her Grandma, came in trying to 'help' the situation. When my daughter did not want Grandma to help, my mum stormed out of the room calling her 'pathetic'.
"This hit me deeply. Who in their right mind calls a two-year-old girl pathetic?"
After the scathing comment was made, the woman's husband immediately stepped in to tell his mother-in-law that what she had said was unacceptable, stating: "I don't care if you don't agree with our parenting. I don't care what you think about this situation. But you will never, ever speak to or about my daughter like that again."
But the comment stuck with the woman, as her mum later told her she had "never seen a two-year-old that bad" - which has since left her questioning her own abilities as a mum.
She added: "At the time I was overcome with immense guilt. Was I really that terrible of a mum? My own mum had a lot of children and 'had never seen a toddler that bad'. I must be doing something incredibly wrong. Is there something wrong with my daughter? Is she 'bad'?"
Thankfully, with time, the woman has since come to understand that she isn't a bad mum and that all toddlers will scream and cry over small things as they continue to grow and learn.
Although her mum's words hurt her, the woman is determined to continue raising her daughter in the way she believes is best for her, no matter what anyone else says.
She said: "Words will absolutely hurt you. Words are powerful. And so for our own children, my husband and I are creating boundaries. This kind of talk will absolutely not pass in our house or around our children.
"And if you don't agree, then you are not welcome in our lives. It's as simple as that.
"We will raise our daughter (and all of our children of course) to know that they are strong, capable, smart, resilient, and kind.
"We will do our best to help guide them through the huge emotions they are learning to deal with. We will be the constant calm in their lives. We will only ever lift them up so they can in return lift themselves, and others, up too."
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