Sister Wives star Maddie Brown came under fire recently after sharing photos of her 2-year-old son Axel James still using a pacifier. Brown, the 23-year-old daughter of Kody Brown and Janelle Brown, fired back and defended her parenting decisions. Brown and her husband, Caleb Brush, welcomed their second child, daughter Evangelynn Kodi Brush, in August.
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On Saturday, Brown shared another photo with Axel, showing him using a pacifier. She included a long statement in the caption, responding to the constant outcry she gets from her followers.
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“Axel’s paci is a hot topic and I receive countless [private messages], comments and all of it,” Brown wrote. “People are just trying to be helpful, I get that. It’s not helpful though, it makes me feel worse because he was weened at one point. It’s something I set up evaluations for, talk to his teachers about, talk to his doctors about because I get so much flack on here it stresses me out that much.”
Brown wrote that Axel was weened from the pacifier before Evangelynn was born on Aug. 20. It was the “one thing he regressed on” after he became a big brother.
“Trust me, I did everything to fight it,” she continued. “I took this picture to send to my mom, that we were finally done fighting, after Axel walked around for 3 hours crying till he threw up. We both had melted downs, my house was DESTROYED from him looking for it (because he knows where we hide it) and all the other things you can imagine. After that I talked to his pediatrician (again), the medical professional who ACTUALLY KNOWS AXEL AND WHERE AXEL IS AT IN HIS LIFE. His Doctor said its not something I shouldn’t be stressing about during this transition time for our family. Its something we are going to start slowly with when things are a little less fresh.”
Brown said Axel does not use the pacifier at school and is as “verbal as they expect.” She later wrote that his “transition from 1-2 has kicked my a—.”
“I know it does so many other moms as well! I hear it! Adding all the stress of your opinions about my child paci does not help and it makes me want to snap back with so much worse than I do and stop showing my life,” Brown wrote.”
In the end, Brown said she knows she is not the only mother who gets advice, but it has not been helpful in her situation.
“We as moms have enough guilt,” she wrote. “Chances are, what you are about to say, has already been said to them 10000x by someone else just coming from a loving place as well. Unless the advice is asked for, just be supportive of the decisions being made. Its really that simple I promise. We are all trying out best here!”
Brown’s comment earned several supportive statements from mothers, many of whom told her to ignore the haters.
“You’re doing great Mama….I feel you on the unasked advice but no one knows him like you do and you know what he needs… He won’t be going off to college with a paci and if he does hell just be starting a new trend,” one person wrote.
“You are the only one who knows how to be axels mom. YOU,” another wrote. “1 to 2 nearly killed me.. hugs mama you got this.”
“He is only 2! People need to get a grip,” another wrote.
Sister Wives airs on TLC, and Season 13 ended in April. The show is believed to be coming back for a 14th season, after camera crews were seen filming members of the Brown family.
Photo credit: YouTube/TLC
