British Mom Blames Facebook Addiction for Neglecting Her Daughter
When 22-year-old mother of two Kelly Moyston appeared on the TV show “Wife Swap,” viewers were so upset by her approach to parenting that they urged social services to get involved.
Kyrsty Hazell writes on MadeforMums.com that during the show, which aired in June, viewers saw her feeding her 18-month-old daughter Georgina potato chips for breakfast and leaving her in soiled diapers while she surfed the Internet for 10 hours a day.
After saying that taking her daughter out for a walk was “a drag” and blaming the high number of fast-food outlets for her feeding Georgina junk food, viewers and fellow contestant Kelly Murphy called for social services to intervene, earning her the label “Britain’s Worst Mum.”
Moyston claimed it was her “addiction to Facebook” that caused her to neglect her daughter. “Days after she was born I signed up to Facebook and it wasn’t long until I couldn’t bear to turn off the computer. Going out with a baby was a drag,” she told Closer magazine.
Moyston would spend 10 hours emailing friends, exchanging virtual gifts, and playing games, leaving her no time to spend with her daughter, cook, or clean.
However, since giving birth to her second daughter, Isabella, three months ago, Moyston claims she has changed her ways.
“I admit I neglected Georgina, but I’m different now. I only spend six hours a day on Facebook and sometimes take Georgina to the park. I admit I do still have the TV on most of the time for her while I’m busy, but I only give her McDonalds if nothing else is available, why would I go to the supermarket when I could buy a burger chips and a drink for £1.50?”
Moyston also said in her interview with Closer magazine that she’ll do more cleaning and has even invited social services to her house to prove that things are better.
“I’ll always be a daily user as it’s an addiction,” she says of Facebook. “I log on in the morning and spend most time online when they go to bed.”
