Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
My youngest is 7 and he goes in the women's with me if it is just the 2 of us. And I don't care what others think. I am not sending him into a public restroom by himself until I feel he is ready.
I feel 7-ish is a reasonable age to begin sending them into their own sex restroom, but there are always exceptions to the rule. My husband did on more than one occasion ask a kindly woman to accompany our daughter into the ladies restroom when he was out with her and never once did someone say "no". He said women were always willing to assist.
I do however take exception to seeing older (9+ year-old) boys in women's restrooms and dressing rooms and yes, I actually do see that on an occasional basis. I was in Macy's not too long ago trying on a dress and a small boy, probably around 8, suddenly popped his head up from under the dressing room door as I was half-dressed. I yelled at him to stop it and loudly said "someone has a very poorly behaved little peeper in here". I heard a woman call out a name and then he ran away. I was a little perturbed by that.
That actually brings up an interesting point. What do you guys do at the YMCA pool in the winter when you ahve to be able to change? I for sure am not letting my son (7.5 yrs) go into the dressing rooms by himself. We use the private dressing rooms but he has to walk through with me and there are typically moms dressing/undressing their children out by the lockers. Haven't been to the pool at all this winter but I used to all the time. Would you have a problem with an 8-9 year old boy walking through the women's dressing room?
I wouldn't even worry about that guy confronting you. To answer your question I would say around the age of 7-8..I remember that's when my parents let me go into the potty alone in the park. Just make sure they check out the restroom and give you the a-ok before they go and do their business.
I would rather see a boy in the ladies room than a little girl in the ladies room watching me under the stall door!
(this actually happened to me at the gym today, the girl was maybe 3 years old and luckily me and her mother noticed her looking under the stalls pretty quickly!)
That actually brings up an interesting point. What do you guys do at the YMCA pool in the winter when you ahve to be able to change? I for sure am not letting my son (7.5 yrs) go into the dressing rooms by himself. We use the private dressing rooms but he has to walk through with me and there are typically moms dressing/undressing their children out by the lockers. Haven't been to the pool at all this winter but I used to all the time. Would you have a problem with an 8-9 year old boy walking through the women's dressing room?
Not sure about your local Y but mine has the restriction that children over 6 can not use the family locker room. A 8-9 years old should not be in the locker room of the opposite gender.
There's no law against the opposite sex going into a restroom as far as I know. If someone complains, or says you can't take a child in there with you, just tell them that! Or tell them to call the police and watch the look on their face! There's too many weirdos in the world looking to harm children!
Not sure about your local Y but mine has the restriction that children over 6 can not use the family locker room. A 8-9 years old should not be in the locker room of the opposite gender.
So what do mothers do when they take their son's? I'm just not comfortable letting him go into a large open dressing room like that too change by himself.
That actually brings up an interesting point. What do you guys do at the YMCA pool in the winter when you ahve to be able to change? I for sure am not letting my son (7.5 yrs) go into the dressing rooms by himself. We use the private dressing rooms but he has to walk through with me and there are typically moms dressing/undressing their children out by the lockers. Haven't been to the pool at all this winter but I used to all the time. Would you have a problem with an 8-9 year old boy walking through the women's dressing room?
My boys (7 & 9) are too old to go through the ladies dressing room and too young to go into the men's dressing room by themselves.
If there isn't a family dressing room available, I would have my kids wear their swimsuit to the pool (under their clothes if it was cold outside). When they were done swimming, I would take them to a restroom (ladies room if necessary) in another part of the building to get dressed back into their street clothes - they could change in one of the stalls.
... A young girl, who was maybe 8, went outside and told her father who was waiting for her that there were boys in the restroom and she was afraid. When we came out, the father confronted me about my boys being in the womens' room...saying something to the effect of "the sign says women, they ought not be in there". They are only 5, sir, I said. He proceeded to say "I don't care how old they are, they aren't allowed in there." Which brings up the question...how old is too old to have boys go into the womens room with mom? I really don't feel safe sending them into the mens room unattended at their current age....not knowing who is in there (a pedophile, who knows?)...and also not being able to go in if they should need my help at some point.
The father of the girl had the decency to wait outside. Can you imagine what went through his mind when his young daughter came out and said there are boys in there and she was afraid??? If everyone had that decency and waited outside the door, kids could safely go in restrooms and no one would have to worry. (Pedophiles aren't around every corner or lurking in every bathroom.) I'm on the side of the father.
Quote:
Originally Posted by DressageGirl
... I for sure am not letting my son (7.5 yrs) go into the dressing rooms by himself. We use the private dressing rooms but he has to walk through with me and there are typically moms dressing/undressing their children out by the lockers. Haven't been to the pool at all this winter but I used to all the time. Would you have a problem with an 8-9 year old boy walking through the women's dressing room?
IMO NO young girl should have to be changing in a WOMEN'S locker room to be seen naked by any boy over the age of about 5.
Mothers of sons are paranoid about their sons, with absolutely no thought of how their paranoia affects their sons AND the young daughters of others.
When my daughter was about 4, we regularly went to the community pool. The locker room was large with rows of benches. There were a few small stalls for those more discreet changers. At the end of the day when the pool closed, we would all be in changing. There was one woman who regularly took her son in with her (He was about 7 or 8.). I always took my daughter into a stall to change because neither of us appreciated being looked at by that boy. He used to sit on the bench while his mother was changing and look around at all those naked bodies. He also would watch through the gap between the curtain and the stall dividers (Those curtains are never made wide enough to completely close them.).
I did not appreciate being gawked at by a strange boy, and my daughter hated changing when he was looking at her. I did not appreciate my daughter being watched by a boy while she was changing.
Talk about raising a pedophile or rapist. I'll bet boys who enter women's restrooms and locker rooms with their mothers are more prone to deviant behavior than those who go into restrooms and locker rooms meant for their sex.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
To answer your question I would say around the age of 7-8..I remember that's when my parents let me go into the potty alone in the park. Just make sure they check out the restroom and give you the a-ok before they go and do their business.
