The mother of a young girl with autism has shared her dismay after encountering an insensitive reaction during her daughter’s supermarket meltdown.
Carlie Middlesbrough, 39, recounted the stressful trip to Sainsbury’s in Morecambe with her four year old daughter Jessica on Sunday April 13. The little one, who is non-verbal and uses a special pram, dashed to the toy section but began to struggle emotionally when her request was denied.
During their shopping at the Lancaster Road store, Jessica ended up on the floor, causing a scene by screaming and kicking. Carlie explained: “We’d gone to get her some more tea cakes which are one of only a few things she’ll eat. When she wanted to look at the toys I said ‘not today’ and she started kicking and screaming.”
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A passer-by then made the situation worse with his overt disapproval. “This man then walked past, slowed down and stopped, and then shook his head really obviously and disapprovingly. I said ‘what are you looking at, she’s autistic’ and he then said ‘who do you think you’re talking to?'”, reports Lancs Live.
The incident left Carlie visibly shaken, even though other shoppers later expressed their concern for her well-being. Despite regularly visiting Sainsbury’s, where staff are familiar with and supportive of Jessica’s needs, this wasn’t Carlie’s first encounter with unkind reactions from other customers.
“It’s happened loads of times,” she said, clearly frustrated. “I’m not one to get upset but it does make me angry and sometimes I have to hold back.”
Shopper Lynne Harrison Faraday expressed her solidarity and shared her thoughts on a local Facebook group regarding the incident. Her message read: “Take no notice of the disapproving stares, the tutting, the remarks, my husband heard you tell a man who stood and stared that your precious little girl had autism and he needs to stop staring.
“I tried to find you to see if you needed a hand with anything, but you had left, I hope you are okay, as a nana of a beautiful little grandson who goes to the Loyne School, I totally understand, it’s just a pity others don’t.”
Speaking to LancsLive, Lynne divulged: “I have worked with students with autism for a lot of years, and my gorgeous eight-year-old grandson has autism, he is non verbal, and goes to the Loyne Specialist School, we all adore him.”
Though most responses were positive, one user’s comment suggested they might be the male shopper in question, posting: “Way too many excuses made for unruly and badly behaved children these days. I will continue to look how I choose and won’t be shamed into reducing my standards on good behaviour to suit today’s poor parenting and children with ‘issues’.”
Carlie, a mother of a son with both autism and ADHD, emphasised the need for greater tolerance and expressed her wish to heighten understanding of autism’s traits. Jessica was just one years old when her mum Carlie spotted signs of autism, just like those her older brother displayed at the same age – such as arranging toys in rows, missing developmental milestones, and struggling to speak.
She said: “You shouldn’t have to walk around with a sign on your forehead saying ‘I’m autistic’. People need to be kinder to each other and not judgemental.”
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