"For me, becoming a mom meant that I suddenly had a list of movies I could truly never watch again. And I don't just mean movies that make you think, "Oh, this hits a little harder now that I have kids," I mean movies that I would literally run from if someone said I had to sit through and watch from beginning to end."
"The same thing happened with Law & Order: SVU. Before I had my first daughter, I could watch it for hours, bingeing one episode after another. Now, the thought of listening to a whole hour-long procedural about a kid being hurt or a young girl being assaulted or any other horrifying thing that happens on that show is too much. My aversion to things like this became worse with each of my daughters' births, and by the time my husband and I had our third girl, we could barely stomach a lot of shows and movies we once enjoyed."
Becoming a mother can create lasting changes in what media feels tolerable, transforming previously enjoyable films and shows into emotionally unbearable experiences. Graphic depictions of child abuse or harm, including specific scenes of attempted murder or assault, provoke intense protective reactions and visceral disgust. Each subsequent child can increase sensitivity to such content, shrinking the list of acceptable entertainment. Familiar procedural dramas or thrillers that center on harmed children can trigger strong aversions and the impulse to avoid or flee from those narratives entirely. The emotional response centers on a heightened need to shield and protect one's own children.
Read at Scary Mommy
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