Mom shares tips on what to do if parents lose a kid in a public place and it's helpful

Losing a child in a public place like a grocery store or a playground is not something a parent would hope for but it can happen to anyone. That is why Jess Martini, who goes by @jesmartini on TikTok, shared what parents can do in such a terrifying situation. "This is a video that all teachers, parents, caregivers, anybody who is regularly responsible for children should hear," Martini starts by saying.

She then begins to give some tips on how to keep a child safe and what to do in case they go missing in a public place. She says that one should make their children wear bright colors similar to each other. "Once I was at a play place and there were three brothers and they were all dressed in neon pink. The only thing I could focus on was those brothers because they stood out so much," she says. Next, the mom suggests taking a picture of kids with entire outfits before entering a crowded area. "And make sure that picture includes their shoes," the woman adds. Martini then advises parents to write their names and numbers on the child somewhere. "Do not ever put the child's name on anything," she shares.

She gives more context to it in the text overlay. "A name could be something a potential abductor uses to make the child more comfortable," she says. After this, the mother talks about the most important tip in such a situation. She tells parents to "loudly look for their child." "Do not start silently looking for them," she explains. "You want to look loudly, and what I mean by that is you start shouting their description while you look. It's going to sound like this: I'm looking for a boy, age five, with short brown hair, brown eyes, Caucasian, red Nike T-shirt, black shorts, and black shoes." Martini asks parents to repeat that over and over again until the kid is found.

The woman says that this would also lead people around to look for the child and the best thing is that someone might end up finding them. "If it was a worst-case scenario, and someone had taken your child, this increases their chances of simply letting them go after hearing everyone immediately looking for them and knowing exactly what they look like," she says. "You may feel you look stupid doing it, and maybe you do, but it is so much better to look stupid than to be sorry." Next, the mom shares that if it is a big group one adult should go to the exit so that the child doesn't exit with someone else. She ends by saying, "Always alert personnel because most places, stores, zoos, Disney World, wherever you are, have protocols in place to look for a missing child."

People in the comments loved the tips that the mom spoke about. @mamachiavan commented, "I was taken when I was 6 years old. I wish my adopted mom would have done this!" @willowbeadsco wrote, "Yes! I always put my IDs in matching neon clothes before going to big events." @msschmitzy shared, "This is perfect advice! I do take these precautions but never thought of sending someone to the exits."@sweetnsavvy said, "Thank you for this! I temporarily lost my child at the park (she was in a play log), and 'instinct' totally made me look quietly. No more!"

You can follow Jess Martini (@jesmartini) on TikTok for more content on parenting.