In the journey of motherhood or parenthood, you are bound to face difficulties and you will wonder what is the best to do for your child in certain situations. You will find yourself as a parent frustrated and desperate at times and not really sure where to take it from where you are. You will seek advice and you will have advice thrust upon you! Some of the advice will be great, some of it will be leave you wondering: What on earth was that!

While keeping in mind that people mostly give advice with the best intentions in mind, 22 mothers share below the worst parenting advice they were ever given. Brace yourself!

I was advised as a parent to stop breastfeeding my son since it can negatively affect my health. As if I'd ever put my health above my son’s if that was true. Which it isn’t. Mirna - Lebanon

If you don't give your infant water, they won't talk early. Maali -Yemen

When I asked one mother if she wasn’t worried that her children stayed up late and that not getting enough night time sleep can negatively affect them, she told me that it’s ok for kids to stay up till 3 or 4 am as long as they sleep in a totally blacked out room, because they will think it’s still night time the next morning. Bessma - KSA

I was advised to stop breastfeeding because formula had more benefits!!! Dana - Kuwait

I was told that responding always to your baby will make him too dependent on you.” Bronwen - Australia

I was talking to my daughter (who was 5 years old then) about what to do when someone bothered her, and I was explaining to her that she can tell the kid who's bothering her that she is hurt, and to try and play with other kids, Etc. And if all else fails, she can always go to the teacher. A mother and an acquaintance overheard me and told me that what I was teaching my daughter is wrong! and she advised me to teach my daughter how to defend herself. How? By telling her to pick on a weaker child! This way the bullies would fear her! Fida - Jordan

Start letting your baby watch TV when they're 5 months old so that they can learn to speak faster. Khulood - Yemen

was told that I should never treat girls like boys because then they will grow up to be too outspoken and opinionated (God forbid) lol. Bessma - KSA

When Talia was one year old, she used to cry a lot at night, and someone advised me to use the “cry out” method, which means to let her cry until she falls asleep on her won. when my daughter grew older and I learned more about parenting, I discovered that following that advice was one of the worst thing I have ever done. my daughter became always cranky at bedtime. As for my daughter Bana, I used a calm and tender method and we didn’t suffer at all. Yamsmeen - Jordan

 I was advised to breastfeed only when the baby cries! Noha - Egypt

 I remember a really terrible advice. when Ghazi my son was a baby, he always suffered from colic and bloating. A relative of ours insisted on giving him blossom water. I felt I was going to pass out and I couldn’t prevent her from doing it, since Ghazi kept crying. Nour, Jordan

I was advised not to breastfeed and to completely rely on the bottle. Weaam - Egypt

Let your baby get at least an hour of sunbathing everyday. Sara - Yemen

If your baby cries when he wakes up. Don't rush to him. He needs to learn to be patient. Finish your cup of coffee” Esraa, Sudan.

My eldest daughter used to love her pacifier. So when I decided it was time to stop using it, my mother told me that she had the same problem with my sister when she was little, only she used to suck her thumb and not the pacifier. My mother put a little bit of chilli pepper on my sister’s thumb to make her stop, and she suggested I do the same thing with my daughter and put chilli powder on the pacifier. I wasn’t convinced and I didn’t follow the advice because it didn’t make sense to me, in spite of my mother’s assurance that it works! Cherine - Lebanon

I was told that I need to potty train my kids when they turn 1 year old. My son is 2.5 years old and he is not ready yet!” Rasha - UAE.

My daughter was colicky and crying a lot. I was breastfeeding her only because she refused to take the bottle. So people told me that breastmilk is not enough and that’s why she was crying, and they suggested that I feed her baby food that contained rice. After I tried everything and nothing worked. I decided to give it a try. It made things worse and caused her severe constipation. Lina - Jordan.

Hit your child if he hits you while he is angry, so he can understand that hitting hurts and that he will get hit if he tried to hit you! Imagine this kind of advice concerning a 2 year old child. Ameena -  Egypt

When I let friends interfere in my daughters friendships and outings after my divorce. They were close friends at the time and they felt entitled to judge and advise as if I wasn't taking good care of them. Nadine - KSA

I was advised to let the baby cry it out at bedtime. It was just horrible. Sarah - Jordan

Don’t feed your child organic food. He needs regular food to build his immunity! Racha, Lebanon

People (I barely know) took me on a guilt trip because I wasn’t breastfeeding  and told me I was hurting my own son. Even though I know the intentions are well, it’s still hurtful for the mom. “ “You never know what circumstances she is going through” Laila - Jordan.