[MakeLoveNotBacon]

Yes I would and did. My biggest regret is not doing it sooner and listening to everyone say he would settle in. We only lasted about 6 weeks and it was 5 weeks too long. He started school at 3yr 9mths and was absolutely fine, not one tear shed.

[SeaPrincess]

I agree with Karla - DS1 was OK in the first daycare he went to, but we had to change when he was about 18 months old. He went 2 days a week, but he never settled in well, and got to the point where he would cry if we even drove in the same direction as daycare and would only stop after we had driven past. I pulled him out as soon as I finished studying for that year and kept him home for nearly a year.

R

[roses99]

Only if I was also uneasy about the childcare centre and if I felt that my child's fears/worries were based on real problems with the level of care.

My 22 month old daughter goes two consecutive days a week and has done since the start of the year. The past two weeks have been the first times she has not cried at all when I dropped her off. Even at the start, she would settle quickly once I'd left. But now there are no tears at all and she absolutely loves it.

[Twinmum+2]

Yes. But then we had other options, so we had that luxury.

Maybe try family day care instead? If you get the right carer it can be lovely, and nowhere near as intimidating for a small child.

[Sharatam]

I once looked after a little boy who would cry from the second he got there (actually before then, as I would hear him crying from the carpark) until the second his parents came to get him. They persisted for ages, until they decided to pull him out of the center and tried him with family day care. He absolutely thrived in family day care, and I saw him with the carer and other children in a shop with a bright smile on his face. It was hard to believe he was the same child. I would consider all my options if my child was miserable in a center, including looking at other centers and family day care, etc.

Good luck, there is nothing worse than seeing your child distressed.

[rosebudkt]

Yes. Absolutely.

My daughter didn't settle and she only had 3 visits. She refused to eat, sleep, drink any fluids, and vomitted from stress. They called me on all 3 occasions asking me to pick her up. I just knew it wasn't right for her. And I couldn't bear putting her into the centre again knowing she was that distressed by the experience. My other daughter went at the same age to the same centre and had absolutely no problems (she is still there). They are different children with different personalities.
In the end I moved out of institutional daycare into the family daycare system with her and she settled with no problems at all. She needed a smaller group with one carer, and just loves it. The double drop off is a pain but my kids are happy and that makes it easier for me to go to work.
I think some kids need different standards/models of care in the early years, not all kids will settle into the routine of a daycare centre, I would look into other options, or if you can postpone work for a few more months.

Good luck!

This post has been edited by rosebudkt: 19/03/2012, 11:45 AM

[libbylu]

It depends on the circumstances and the age of the child. If under 3 and you don't need to work, then I would forget about it. If over 3 or you do need to work then it is worth persisting. My DS never liked going to childcare or kindy at either of the two fantastic centres we sent him to from the age of 18 months to 5. He would have always preferred to stay home with me and often made a fuss in the morning and cried when I dropped him off. But I had to work so it wasn't an option. And I knew that as soon as I was gone he settled really well, had a great time and was hard to get him out at the end of the day! He just found the initial parting from me stressful at the start of the day. Some kids are like that and if you let that stop you then they may never learn to deal with it. Now he's at school and he loves it. Still needs about 5 kisses before I am allowed to leave though!

[No girls here]

I've been in this situation a couple of times.

With our day care, my son cried every single morning for ages and ages and would say he didn't want to go. However I was happy with the centre and the care he was receiving there, and I do know that he would settle after I left so it wasn't like he was upset the entire day. I did not pull him out.

When he started school he was the same with before and after school care, however the quality of care was very poor there and I felt awful leaving him, so I arranged for other people to look after him as much as possible, and just had him going one afternoon a week.

[Wigglemama]

I have to work so I have little option but to send my kids to some form of care. I have been very lucky in the fact that my children have settled well. I have pulled them out of centres where, I felt, that the care was sub standard. Of course I arranged other care first but I would always find a better option if I didnt feel my childrens' best interests were put first.

[I*Love*Christmas]

For me yes I would pull my children out. I am home with them every day so I don't need childcare and if either of mine wasn't enjoying it I would pull them out.