this post was submitted on 15 Sep 2025
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Where I live, Germany, it is very common to spend weeks, sometimes even months, trying to slowly get a child used to going to day care. In my home country, the Netherlands, this wasn't really a thing when I was younger and, from what I've learned from people with young children there, isn't common even today. That got me thinking.

Are there many differences between countries when it comes to day care and specifically getting your children to go to day care in the first place?

We're currently getting our second child used to day care. For our first child the entire process took six weeks and represented the Idea trajectory - nobody was ill, she liked going there, she liked eating there and she didn't make a fuss when it was time to sleep there. Still, this represents a significant investment of time (and therefore money) for any working parent. Sometimes it seems really absurd and impractical. I get the impression that the entire day care system in Germany revolves around the idea that mothers don't work or, if they do, it's only ever part time.

How does this look like in other countries? I've linked an article (in German, but translation services are available) about the system we're stuck with here, if anyone wants to dive deeper.

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[–] victorz@lemmy.world 1 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (1 children)

Yeah, later year problems are more complicated, like convincing the child that what it wants is not possible, or that it has to learn to take responsibility, like getting dressed and going to school, being on time, wiping their own ass, stuff like that. There's gonna be power struggles...

[–] Madzielle@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 5 days ago (1 children)

I want to know when they start to brush their teeth unprompted lmao. My 12 year old still has to be propted, fuck if I forget to remind him

The best thing, because lord I know about power stuggles, is that my kid genuinely trusts me. And that matters the most.

[–] victorz@lemmy.world 2 points 5 days ago

😆❤️ I feel all that.