If you’ve ever lost your child in a crowd, even for a split second, you would have experienced that terrifying sinking feeling in your stomach. That “Where could they be,” that “What if something happened to them,” that “What if someone took them”? Even with supervision and all the right safety tips in place, it can happen and it’s just awful.
I once lost my son at a crowded shopping centre and I was in absolute hysterics. My heart was in my throat, I couldn’t breathe and I had convinced myself someone had stolen him and was already on the highway.
Like many parents who lost their kids in a crowded space, after alerting security, I spent the whole time screaming his name. Running down the shopping centre corridor calling his name, over and over again.
But a mum in the USA suggests that if you ever do lose your child in a crowd, whether it’s at the shops or a playground or anywhere, really, you shouldn’t call their name.
Instead, you should yell out what they are wearing.
TikTok content creator and mother, Krista Piper Gundrey, explained that one time she lost her three-year-old daughter at a crowded play area in a museum and instead of yelling her name, which wouldn’t really help strangers at the play area who don’t know her child, she yelled out her outfit.Â
“Girl, pink shirt, pink Minnie Mouse shirt.”
Okay, so you may come off as a bit of a weirdo, but this makes a lot of sense. Most parents there would totally understand that your Minnie Mouse-wearing daughter was missing and would try to help locate her. It’s almost like a call of action to people to be on alert for this missing child.
If you hear a parent yell out a clothing description, take it as a call for help
This is exactly what happened with Krista. A few minutes after yelling out her daughter’s clothing description, one of the mums nearby heard her and found her daughter.
So if you ever hear a frantic parent call a child’s clothing description out in public, take it as a call to help out. Be alert, look around and hopefully, with the help of more eyes, locate the missing child.
Other safety tips to prevent losing your child in crowded spacesÂ
Supervision is key, but if you ever lose your child in a crowd, these smart safety tips can hopefully help locate your child easier.
ALWAYS MAKE A PLAN: Wherever you go, always have a ‘meeting point’ in place just in case. Under a tree at the beach. Next to a park bench at the playground. Beside the self-checkouts in Kmart. In front of the cafe at a busy trampoline park. Try to keep the same meeting place every time you visit that specific location.
BRIGHT CLOTHING: This is especially important if you are around water. Choose bright-coloured swimwear to easily locate them. Check out this swimsuit colour chart which actually demonstrates the most suitable colour choices for swimsuits (orange and pink are standouts).
SMART WATCH WITH GPS: We’ve sung the praises of smart watches several times, not just for an activity tracker and phone, but also for their GPS capabilities. You can see where your child is through the app at any time.
WRITE THEIR NAME: This is an important one if travelling overseas with kids. Write their name and number on a child’s wrist or place a piece of paper with this info on it in their child’s pocket. Explain to them that if they get lost, they can show this piece of paper to an adult. For older children, teach them your phone number as soon as you can.
