spark

From what I recall, Mr. Higgins is the teacher that I'll push to get somebody in their class. FTR- if a teacher to one of my students, they wouldn't do it a second time. The way you have written him is similar to how I teach. If Lisa was my student and that happened, it wouldn't happen a second time FTR- even the best teachers FU on that issues.

I know about catching kids up with credits. My job primarily consists of pushing students who hate (for good reason) to complete enough units to graduate. A lot of schools start in early August to complete the semester right before Christmas, which means she got credit for the Fall. She has lost her entire Spring semester, even if she was saved in February. It's not easy to make up a semester and still graduate with her class, but it's possible. She is super smart and knows how to get good grades because her mom beat the crap out of her when she got a C on an assignment. The bad is that she will be in the Foster System, and has extremely low self-esteem. She will need a lot of emotional support to even go back to school. She will also need a supportive environment at her school. There are different types of teachers at high school. You've got the I want to be your friend teacher, and that won't help very much. She won't be helped by the teacher who is just a big kid either. The worst case is the teacher who shares parts of her mom's personality, and some of those can be narcissists. What she really needs is a resource teacher. It's not a place where she has to open up about her feelings, but she get to drop her shield.

I'm hoping it's only a matter of weeks, but Sarah no longer being able to count the number of weekends makes me think months and not weeks. BTW- I highly recommend re-reading the whole story once this is done. I picked up on so many things and things that I missed completely like Lisa's uncle not letting her use the bathroom, even though she had a medical issue that should let her use the toilet when she needs to. I thought the dude was a saint, but that doesn't fly with the special education teacher in me. BTW- @MinnesotaWriter I did notice that you called Emilia on one part after Emilia gets put in diapers the first time. At least in the Wattpad version

I just reread the start and this started on October 1. She had the fall the next day, and that was the day of her first accident. The first baby days for Sarah was in November, but the real descent didn't start until her mom confronted her about the Pull-ups Sarah purchased. Imagine the horror of having your child buy herself absorbent underwear to avoid wetting herself.

I still have to get to sleep tonight, so until I'm told otherwise, I'm going with the belief that it isn't Valentine's Day yet. This has been a slow devolution from an honors student on the cheerleading team to where we are now. Literally, it was painfully slow given that we are nearing the 3rd anniversary of the beginning of this story. But that decline was gradual until it just fell off the cliff. I just watched a video on YouTube (last meals) and the question was what is your worst fear? The answer was: being locked in a box. That's exactly what happened Way back in the day, we used to get directors' commentary. Once this story is completed, and all spoilers are done, I want to hear the author's commentary on how this story was built. I think my writing has been inspired by how MW has written his stories, but I couldn't drag out a story that long

I still have to get to sleep tonight, so until I'm told otherwise, I'm going with the belief that it isn't Valentine's Day yet. This has been a slow devolution from an honors student on the cheerleading team to where we are now. Literally, it was painfully slow given that we are nearing the 3rd anniversary of the beginning of this story. But that decline was gradual until it just fell off the cliff. There is something that connects me to this story, and I don't think it's just the ABDL side of me. Mind you, I probably wouldn't have been as vested in the story without the diaper element, but it connects to the teacher in me hardcore. I have a specific student that I visualize when I see Sarah, and she isn't far of form the AI picture he used. This specific student wasn't my student when this story started. Sarah's class would have graduated last year.

This is one area where the United States is technically ahead of other developed. It depends on each state, and it's between 16 and 18. Unfortunately, the dirty little secret is we don't do much to address truancy once a child is 15. FTR, it's rarely a case where parents keep them from school, it's parents not able to get them to go to school. It's called school refusal and happens way too often. I have 2 of them on my caseload. I don't know what my school would have done in Sarah's case. At least in California, there are two situations. The first is if Mom physically disenrolled Sarah from the school, but we're dinged on her if she doesn't enroll in another school. We will ask which school to send the records to, and in California, you can't just say that you're homeschooling them. If we can't find them in CALPADS, they count as our student. She would be considered a dropout. The second case is if Mom just stops sending Sarah to school. In our school, it's the house secretary who makes the first call. After 3 or 4 days of absences, the house secretary would call Mom and ask what's up. A vague response would raise a red flag, and we would elevate it to what we call a SARB. I think my school is kind of weak in this area, but I'm almost certain that if we were unsure of Sarah's location, an administrator would talk with her friends to find out what they contacted her. That would a HUGE red flag, and the sheriff would be called. I'm excited to read how CPS worker responds when they see Sarah lying in a crib with a soiled diaper. I'm fairly certain they would immediately send the sheriff to Mom's work and a CPS responder to Emilia's daycare. The question is: does Mom see CPS on the Nanny cam, and make a run for it.

I taught at 3 different virtual charter schools from 2012 to 2021. The supervision that we were able to provide was limited in all 3 schools, and only 1 school even attempted to do it at a satisfactory level. The students that I teach are frequently subjected to abuse, and it could be hard to find in that environment. I did call CPS once, which was when a mom wouldn't let us teach her son. He became an adult right before I quit that school and self-conserved himself, which I'm not sure is legal. I knew the homeschool route was probable, but I didn't want to let myself think about it. I was at one of the schools when the Turpins were discovered, and I would have quit if they were at my school. Even when I read this chapter the first time, I refused to accept what I read. I thought that Sarah was saved the same week school started, and then I re-read it and realized just how bad it was. FTR-I planned on writing a bit on the story, but that was shot after reading this. 🙁 As bad as the picture of abuse that you've painted, there are worse cases in the news. You may have surprises as the details unfold, but Sarah was fed, provided for, and wasn't physically tortured. I wonder if it's worse to be confined to a crib through intimidation than to be locked in a cage.

Sadly, you're right. https://hslda.org/legal I based that on what I know about California's rules. I could see the Mom going with homeschooling, but I didn't think she would ignore Sarah's schooling. Ever since I finished this chapter I've had this vision of what this poor girl must have gone through. Endure weeks and weeks confined to a crib for most of the week with no real human interaction. I'm sure the only interaction she had was when her sister played with her and she wasn't allowed to fully communicate because of the forced baby talk rule.

Great thoughts! @MinnesotaWriter did you do any research on types of incontinence that Sarah would have? I don't do deep research, but I do check if there is a condition that could explain the issues. The abuse broke Sarah. The passage of time is intentionally vague, which makes sense given what Sarah has gone. I sense that it is months rather than weeks because she lost track of the weekends. She is in a worse place than Lisa ever was, I hope there is an update soon.

I knew it! I'm sure you'll explain in the coming chapters, but I wonder how they found out. I think the red flag was pulling communication from Sarah, which put Lisa on alert and then disenrolled her in school. It didn't appear that Mom did anything about homeschooling. Homeschooling requires parents to register with a district, and the district is responsible for showing evidence that education is happening. Great chapter! It's heartbreaking to see how much Mom destroyed Sarah's will and turned her into a pathetic character.

Who remembers when the toy in Cracker Jack was cool? FTR- favorite candy has been Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, but Sweet Tarts are great.

My advice is don't have less-than-competent surgeons cut into you. It's just not a good idea.

I didn't want to be potty trained in the first place. I held off as long as I could, but peer pressure and parental urging took it toll and convinced me to use the potty like a big boy. I was nearly five, and have regretted it ever since.

When I read it back, you said that every single drop has been a struggle, and not that every single drop has been in a diaper. I read it that, so that's on me. That makes a lot more sense. I firmly believe that incontinence-seeking surgery is self-harm because the outcome is a body that doesn't function as it should. The body's hardware is changed and no longer retains urine. Plastic surgery and tattoos do not change the way the body operates. Even with SRS, the body is still doing the job it was designed to do. An extreme example would be somebody with amputation dysphoria who seeks to have their leg amputated, which does happen. I would assert and would hope most would agree, that amputating a healthy leg is self-harm. I also have a lot of medical professionals in my family and know what I expect from a doctor. The surgeries we've mentioned have loads and loads of research and have been performed many times. We're talking about an unproven surgery that is rarely performed. I don't want somebody performing a pioneering surgery on me unless I'm going to die otherwise. I also have medical professionals in my family, so I know what I want with a doctor. I'm not letting anybody cut into me that I don't trust. I don't trust a doctor who would perform a procedure that hurts a body's function and require them to defend their decisions. BTW- I have a broader definition of self-harm than most. I spend my professional life trying to support anxiety-prone teenagers who hate school and need to endure another few years of it. I'm always conscious of cutting, or suicide idolation. I consider school refusal to be self-harm, however, I don't think herbal self-medication is. I'm wondering if you and I are in a similar place with bladder control, but I'm happy where I'm at and you're not. FTR, we come from very different places with our potty training experience. I don't remember much of my experience other than I peed my pants a lot. I don't remember my mom getting mad at me, but I do think she resorted to diapers on occasion. Somewhere around my fifth birthday I just stopped peeing my pants. That could be why I'm happy where I am now. For instance, I've wet my diaper probably 8 times today, and it's wet. I'm not ready to change it, but I bet a caregiver would. But I know every single time that I pee, and I still know that I'm going to pee. I don't call it a struggle, but I know I'm about to pee. If I want to go to the bathroom, I can, but I'm not.

It begs the question what will happen to you mentally when you have accidents randomly with no control? That subconscious part of your body is still there. The trauma is still there, and you will feel it when you wet yourself. What you're telling me is that you've never peed in the toilet for four years, and yet every time you've struggled to pee. FTR- it was a struggle when I tried to use makeshift diapers. Once I accepted that my diaper wouldn't leak, it gradually got easier. While I was using diapers intermittently, I had to pre-wet the diaper and it was only easy when I was standing. I don't know how somebody can struggle to urinate every single time for four years without seeking help, however, I don't think self-harm is the answer. I believe any doctor willing to perform these types of surgeries is unethical, and I have questions about going to the facilities that are willing to perform such surgeries. Those surgeries would be extremely risky, and not performed often. On top of that, you still aren't guaranteed the outcome you desire. Even if the surgery is successful and you are incontinent, it might not be what you thought it would be. I'm just some random dude on the internet, who happens to share your desire to pee in diapers. Maybe mine is more akin to becoming unpotty-trained, which I don't think is the same thing as being incontinent. In my case, I can use the potty, but I choose not to. I do poop in the potty because poo is yucky (little kid talk is intentional there). I also don't react to my wet diapers and need an adult to make sure I don't stay in one. However, that adult is also me. You don't need my permission to do it, and it doesn't matter whether I believe you or not. My advice for people planning to pay $20+K for a risky invasive surgery that is designed to harm your body is to include an independent mental health professional on your team.

Are you implying that story was made up? I thought all of the AITA posts were 100% accurate and never made up. I'm so disappointed to find out that they aren't trustworthy😁

The headlines are misleading and definitely clickbait https://www.yourtango.com/entertainment/teacher-says-more-kindergarteners-ever-still-diapers This is the only article that shares evidence, which is a survey from Kindergarten that says that 15-20% of Kindergartners are not potty trained, but doesn’t define what that means. After that it shares hearsay stories that are not verifiable. https://www.reddit.com/r/Teachers/comments/1746pov/teachers_are_tired_of_changing_diapers_for/?rdt=41208 This article is pure hype. The headline is: Teachers Are Tired of Changing Diapers For 11-Year-Olds; Number Of Older Children Wearing Diapers is Skyrocketing It doesn’t share any examples of 11-year-olds wearing diapers to school, nor did the main article that it was based on. https://www.reddit.com/r/Teachers/comments/16rscgn/diaperchanging_stations_at_elementary_school_no/ This is a reddit post from a teacher who teaches virtually. It links to articles about the demands of Kindergarteners and says that parents aren’t teaching them to take care of basic needs. The entire section about diaper changing tables is: https://www.reddit.com/r/Teachers/comments/14gjze9/sil_says_teachers_are_lazy_and_selfish_for/ This is just a Reddit post that is complaining about a relative—nothing to see here. We know that delayed potty training is far more common than it used to be. Nobody would ever think of a five-year-old still needing diapers during the day when I was five. I came close, but that was extreme in the 70’s. I suspect the true number was 1 in 500 when I was in kindergarten. I doubt the 1 in 6 is accurate, but I suspect that 10% of Kindergarteners have issues with toileting during the day.

Stupid AI- thinking I meant Potty-trained. For me, being Potty-trained was just wrong and I held off as long as I could and took it back the first chance I got. You and I have shared our journey for a while, and I think a live conversation between the two of us would be very interesting. I think I've refined what I true desires over the last few years. Rather than being incontinent, and completely unable to control my bladder, I want to be non-potty-trained. FTR-I've been mostly 24/7 since 2018? I still know when I pee, even at night (maybe). I can still use the toilet, but I don't. I don't let my diaper get that wet at work because I don't want to risk a leak. But I've started using boosters to make sure I don't leak. The desire to use a diaper is very strong with me. This is something that I've wanted my entire adult life. But I don't believe the desire is to be incontinent, but to be non potty-trained. I get what you're saying because I was right there with you when I was 34, except I wasn't 24/7. I did consider surgeries, but I didn't have the money and it scared me. In my case, and that might not be your case- I wanted to justify my desire to be in diapers. TBH, the older you get, the less you give an F about what other people think. I no longer need to justify that desire, but I did in my 30's. I don't mean to call you out, but I don't understand how you can say that you gone 24/7 and every drop as been a struggle. I have put a lot of pee into the toilet over the last 4 years, but 90% has been in a diaper. Sometimes it is easier, but sometimes I need to think about it. That's with me peeing in the toilet when I know I can and have to.

I strongly with the advice on the article you posted. In my case, I'm born in early September. School started a day after my 5th birthday, I was barely out of diapers and very immature. My parents decided to redshirt me and start on my sixth birthday (literally- that's the day I started). I was the oldest, but close to the median of my peers in emotional age. I matured slower than my peers, so by the time I was 10, I was behind the rest of my class. I didn't catch up with them until I was 17. I think parents only consider what it is like for the 4-year-old in Kindergarten, but the effect continues. The cutoff in California is November 30 and our semester starts in early August. That means a kid is 13 years old for the first 4 months of high school. As a High School teacher, my cutoff would be June 1, which means every single kid would graduate as an adult, and if you're early- you get a dress rehearsal as an adult.

I teach special education and I'm familiar with IDEA. IDEA requires public school districts to educate every child between 6 and 18 years (22 if they have an IEP) with a Free and Appropriate Public Education in the Least Restrictive Environment. That is the exact line that we use. That means that a child who is over six years old can not be denied a public school education for any reason, and that education must be provided in the closest to the general education setting. This idea that a school will not accept a child who isn't potty without an underlying medical issue is BS. Also, a child must have an IEP to receive special education service, which you can't qualify for without a qualifying disability. The criteria for a qualifying disability is specific and the ability to toilet yourself independently is not one of the criteria. An otherwise non-disabled who isn't potty trained wouldn't qualify for an IEP. However- a 6-year-old who isn't potty trained likely meets the criteria for one of the qualifying, but their toileting couldn't be exclusively used to determine FAPE. However, dealing with diapers would count. It's far too complex to figure out how a district handles individual situations, and districts would handle it very differently. Most of the articles sourced are clickbait. One of them said that most Kindergarteners aren't potty trained in the headline but the article paints it as unusual but not rare At some point, peer pressure forces things and we are a long way from having 1st graders being accepting of peers in diapers.

There is another diaper forum that has a reputation for being autocratic. I haven't been there in a long time, but the site would respond with a "Be careful what you wish for" response. The culture of the site was one that even the desire to be unpotty-trained was frowned upon. People were warned that it is irreversible and permanent, which isn't backed by data and I think is absurd. I've not noticed that much here, but I think we go too far in the opposite direction. I've been personally because I do very strongly against encouraging self-harm. I was called intolerant because I didn't accept that it was ingrained and that they needed to be incontinent. I chose not to respond to a recent post, although you know which one I'm talking about with my previous response.

There are certainly elements of that. Mind you this is hypothetical. In this hypothetical situation, I would be in diapers all the time, use baby items at home like a crib, high chair, bottles, sippy cup, and maybe a playpen (that one is only for punishment). I could still get to pretend to be an adult when required in public. I could even go back to being a full adult for short periods (Like a weekend with my friends). I don't think I could be a 24/7 baby with absolutely no adult interaction for more than a few days. However, I can see a scenario where this fantasy would be desirable. However, I'm sure the reality would be different than the fantasy. I could end in time out because I have a tantrum. I want to have a beer and my mommy won't let me.

I find it funny when the effort to stop the desire for incontinence by sharing the obstacles to being 24/7. It focuses on cost, the need to always have diapers on you, and the requiring changes in public. First, I'm already 24/7, so I know exactly what it is like; especially how it affects my life. I know how many diapers I need on a given day. I'm fortunate that I don't have a level where I'm peeing every 15 minutes, but it's about once an hour. It's something that I've already understood and accepted. However, I do have an issue with the sub-group that is encouraging posters to do something unsafe. I think considering giving an unregulated medical professional a lot of money to perform a medical procedure that purposely harms body parts is unsafe, and not wise. It is not something that should be encouraged in any way. I think if that's where you are, there is something deeper going on and the permanent incontinence isn't going to help as much you think. There are ways to train yourself to be incontinent, and it is far safer than harming yourself. To put it simply: just wear a diaper and use it. Eventually, your brain accepts that the diaper is where you pee and poo go and you are no longer potty trained. By the time that happens, you've already experience life as a 24/7 diaper wearer and will know whether it is right for you.

She may be thinking that, but she a long way from wanting it. That's what makes it abuse. Abuse can do funny things to the abused, and that's where Sarah is right now. IMO- I don't believe that's how the story ends. In the end, Sarah might have bladder issues and require diapers, but I don't see her ending up being treated like a baby in any way. Personally, I any ending that Sarah ends up still under her mother's control and sad, and not in the spirit of the story. A sad ending doesn't feel right to me. I'm fascinated by the legal requirements if Lisa shared her concerns with her uncle at home during Christmas break, and whether he would be legally required to report to CPS. He is technically not in the mandated capacity at that point, but I think it would require a report to CPS. FTR- he doesn't need legal recourse to make the report Mom would have no legal recourse if he filed the report, even if no evidence was discovered. Much would depend on what Lisa suspects, and to what level. She could easily share that there is untreated incontinence and Sarah is afraid to have Lisa talk to her mom about it, and that is enough to make a CPS report for me. I would suspect medical neglect.