Talk to Your Kids About Abduction Prevention
It’s a scary thing to have kids; it’s as though your own heart is living outside your own body. This is probably why I’ve had so many conversations with people who are concerned that their child could one day be taken by a stranger. The concern is totally understandable. As I write this, it is National Missing Persons Day, a somber reminder that people do go missing. If you worry about this, I get it: this is a real concern in our world. So, it’s worth it to learn how to prepare our children to protect themselves from this danger. For parents of young kids, we must change our language around this topic: “Don’t talk to strangers.” If you’ve heard me talk about this before, you know this is my least favorite piece of advice to give to kids. “Don’t talk to strangers” is a principle that doesn’t prepare kids for reality. The result of this axiom: a bunch of kids who don’t know how to talk to adults. What would happen if we changed the verbiage? Consider this advice instead: “Don’t go anywhere with a stranger.” If your child is ever separated from you and needs help, you will want them to know which strangers to speak to and get help from. Teach them how to identify safe adults.
Additionally, young kids need to know what to do if they are approached by a stranger. During this age, parents are usually near their children while in public; this will deter most predators. However, if for some reason you are not near when this happens, then children need to know what to do. Here are some rules to consider speaking with your kids about:
Adults don’t need help from children. You don’t need to help an adult whom you don’t know.
If an adult whom you don’t know makes you feel weird, you don’t have to be around them or talk to them.
If an adult doesn’t let you leave, you can set off wild kid mode: yelling, screaming, hitting, biting, scratching, and acting absolutely out-of-control for the purpose of getting away and back to safety.
There’s so much more we could discuss about abduction prevention. (We haven’t touched on this topic as it relates to teens and preteens!) However, this space is too small to discuss the nuance of the topic. As we close, I feel a need to end the discussion of this darker subject with a ray of hope: while child abduction does happen, there are some sensible ways we can train kids to respond to dangerous situations that can have huge results. Our hearts may live outside our bodies and, therefore, outside our reach at times, but that doesn’t mean we cannot teach our little hearts how to fight to get home safely.