Abby Connolly
How did you feel about sleeping over at your friend’s house or sleepover parties when you were a kid?
I knew some kids who loved sleepovers and tried to schedule them every weekend, I knew others who thought they could handle them but ended up calling their mom to get them in the middle of the night every time, and I also knew some who didn’t like sleepovers at all and would get picked up before everyone went to bed.
Nowadays, parents are weighing their opinions on sleepovers and have begun intervening in their children’s decision whether or not to sleep over at their friends’ houses.
While many parents agree that play dates and having quality time with friends at their houses are vital to their children’s socialization and development, some are beginning to draw the line at sleepovers.
Why? They fear that sleepovers make them more vulnerable to adults with bad intentions.
Parents have been taking to social media to share their thoughts on sleepovers, and one mom went viral for sharing a harrowing story from her past that made her not want to send her kids to sleepovers.
Randi Burkett (@randigaylord_) is a mom and TikTok creator who used to work in a men’s prison. She shared a story from working in the prison that influenced her decision not to let her children go to sleepovers.
In her viral video, Randi explains that she worked in a level-5 men’s prison. Her captain did everything he could to keep her from having direct contact with the inmates as often as he could to keep her safe or away from any traumatic experiences, especially since she was a young woman at the time.
However, one night, the prison was understaffed, so she was assigned to supervise inmates in the C-dorm. She later learned that the C-dorm was a designated dorm for inmates who had committed crimes involving children.
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