Mom Says Her 'Heart Sank' When She Saw What Her 8-Year-Old Daughter Wanted For Christmas
She wants more than just a new iPad.
ORION PRODUCTION | Shutterstock As Christmas approaches, many children are sending out their wish lists to Santa. Usually, parents expect their kids' Santa lists to consist of the latest toys, a new pet, or the latest tech. However, one mother was left shocked and heartbroken upon reading her eight-year-old daughter’s wish list to Santa.
The holiday season, like it or not, has most little kids giddy with the excitement of presents. As it turns out, however, not all kids want a new Stanley or even a gaming system. Some kids want gifts that can't be made at Santa's workshop, and those gifts are the most meaningful and most heart-wrenching.
A mother’s 'heart sank' when she learned her daughter asked Santa for 'more friends' and 'less bullying.'
In a TikTok video that has touched millions, Suzy Boliver, a mother of two, shared her eight-year-old daughter’s list to Santa. At first, her list appeared innocent enough, containing items that any 8-year-old girl would want: Squishmallows, a pink iPad mini, and colorful new pencils.
However, the last two requests on the list took a sudden, heartbreaking turn. Boilver’s daughter wrote that she wants “even more friends” and “less bullying to me.”
“When you get your eight-year-old daughter’s Christmas list,” Boilver wrote in text over her video. “When I say my heart sank.” She wrote in the caption, “I wasn’t going to post this. But you know what… this is being 8 years old ... and maybe we should be talking about it.”
The little girl's list to Santa highlighted how bullying remains prevalent in schools.
“I teach elementary school. This breaks my heart,” one user shared. “Makes me not want to even send my kids to public school. So sad.”
“We need to do something about bullying. We are taking way too long,” one user wrote. The commenter certainly isn't wrong. According to Stomp Out Bullying, 1 out of 4 kids has been bullied. Worse yet, 5.4 million kids have admitted to staying home from school out of fear of being bullied.
In an episode of her podcast "Ask Lisa," clinical psychologist Dr. Lisa Damour explained, "bullying makes kids anxious. It makes kids depressed. It can cause what we call somatic symptoms where they have stomach aches or headaches, that can be in the immediate term. When we look down the line, we see more substance use, we see more depression, we see more really lasting things. And this doesn’t mean that every kid who’s bullied is going to suffer from all of these things, but this is to say, we don’t mess with this. Right? We take bullying very seriously." She added, "people who were bullied in middle school or elementary school or any point in their life, they can be 40, 50 years old. And when they think about it, it’s like they’re back there, and it is exquisitely painful. Bullying can really, really leave a very lasting injury in people."
Other parents sympathized with Boliver, noting that their children wrote similar things on their lists. “My nine-year-old wrote this year ‘to be pretty’, I have no words for the sadness,” one parent revealed.
Other users offered suggestions to Boliver on how she could help her daughter and make her Christmas wishes come true. “Please help her find some friends and if you can’t stop the bullying have her change schools,” one user recommended. “I’m a teacher and if she is writing about it ask the teacher but also fully move her away from bullies no matter what. Too many lost little lives.”
The mom needs to acknowledge her daughter's bullying and work with her to formulate a plan.
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Most parents would assume that at 8 years old, this little girl is too young to weigh in on the issues at her school, but bullying experts say that's not the case. According to the Anti-Bullying Alliance, the first step is to assure the bullied child that what's happening is not their fault. More importantly, the outlet noted, parents must "Reassure them that you will not take any action without discussing it with them first." Adding, "Find out what your child wants to happen next. Help to identify the choices open to them; the potential next steps to take; and the skills they may have to help solve the problems."
Once you have a plan, a great next step is getting a bullied child involved in activities outside of their current peer group. This could be anything from sports to art. New kids and new experiences can improve self-esteem and reestablish confidence.
In the meantime, it sounds like Boliver's daughter has made some internet friends without even trying. “You should set up a PO Box so we can send her postcards from friends around the country. I’d send her one from Oregon!” one commenter offered. “Any kind of squishmallow in particular she is looking for? I have some to give away and would love to send some her way,” another user wrote.
Boliver thanked other TikTokers for their support and kind words. She revealed that she would be enrolling her daughter in martial arts classes to help her gain the confidence she needs to make new friends and stand up for herself.
Megan Quinn is a writer with a bachelor's degree in English and a minor in Creative Writing. She covers news and lifestyle topics that focus on justice in the workplace, personal relationships, parenting debates, and the human experience.
