Has anyone ever had their mouth washed out with soap as a punishment for swearing as a kid?
Posted by Financial-Base-8070@reddit | AskUK | View on Reddit | 223 comments
It was only ever a threat for me, however it has happened to a few friends of mine.
TinyBunnyPetal__@reddit
OMG creased him for years is hilarious đ I can only imagine how gross that must have tasted tho lol
Bananno1976@reddit
Yes. You can fight the bar. You cannot fight liquid dish soap..
Efficient_Data2982@reddit
I tried it a few times. My kids seemed to like it. So, I switched and threaded to use hot sauce. Oldest canât get a hot enough sauce now @ 40yrs old. Guess I created a monster!!
mtntrail@reddit
Well sort of related. In about 1957 my grandfather threatened to rub dog shit on my hands so I would stop biting my nails. He was a tough old coot but never followed through fortunately.
Wyldstallyn80@reddit
Yeah, my mum was a real piece of shit.
thecxsmonaut@reddit
You'll miss me when I'm gone.
ItsyouNOme@reddit
Promise?
Crack398@reddit
Watch Your Language!
Superspark76@reddit
Fetch the soap!!!
royrocks26@reddit
Yep! More than one occasion it was with the liquid soap youâd have to pump to get out. My mother cut my gums up a few times because she put the pump part in my mouth then extract the soap from the bottle.
DameKumquat@reddit
No, but it happened to a boy at my primary school. We'd have been about 7, 1982.
I imagine the soap was less traumatic than the rest of the class watching and laughing.
Financial-Base-8070@reddit (OP)
It happened to a kid at my primary school around 1990, he ended up getting sick everwhere and they never did it again.
PositivelyAcademical@reddit
Same, although this would have been 1996.
Intrepid_Bearz@reddit
Our art teacher used to do that in 1st form! When I told Mum she said âwell you probably deserved itâ âŚwhich was a fair point. Wasnât for swearing though, just for talking in class.
Luton_Enjoyer@reddit
Did you live in the Victorian times?
AnonymousTimewaster@reddit
Corporal punishment in schools was only banned in the late 90s iirc. In fact it might have even been the very early 2000s.
Financial-Base-8070@reddit (OP)
Some informal corporal punishment still went on in my school in the 90s The teachers would sometimes throw textbooks at anyone who was day dreaming.
HanzoKurosawa@reddit
It was banned in 1986 for public schools. But it wasn't banned in private schools until 1998.
Intrepid_Bearz@reddit
Haha! Just growing up in the 80s things
Acceptable_Tap_2251@reddit
My mum and dad would say this and not mean it.Â
When I was about 5 I swore and then quietly took myself off and washed my mouth out with soap.Â
My mum was devastated. Dad was too but it also creased him for years đ
Do_You_Like_Owls@reddit
What was it like? đŹ
Acceptable_Tap_2251@reddit
I don't remember too clearly myself but my dad always said it was the nicest smelling puke he ever smelled đ
Financial-Base-8070@reddit (OP)
Haha
Ok_Satisfaction_4604@reddit
Misery. Like swallowing battery acid. (Something I also wouldn't suggest)
angelstatue@reddit
yaaaaayyyyyy child poisoning đđđđ
nomspom@reddit
I did it myself once as a kid. I donât really remember why, but I do remember my mum saying that itâs just a saying and I shouldnât have done that
WalkerJoggerSprinter@reddit
That sounds more like abuse than a casual punishment tbh
Ancient-Ad9861@reddit
It was the norm 25-30 years ago. Different times
Milam1996@reddit
So was smacking and raping your wife doesnât stop it being abuse. A whole generation of people were abused growing up and then gaslit into thinking itâs normal and explains a lot of why the older generation are so reactionary.
veryblocky@reddit
I donât think even in the good old year of 1996 smacking and raping your wife was considered normal.
OrangeChevron@reddit
Yeah people online and in podcasts often make out like the mid-late 90's - early/mid 2000's was still this complete dark age
As well as assuming there were absolutely no progressive social norms I've heard people asking if there were security cameras, DNA testing in those eras
kaveysback@reddit
No but marital rape was only criminalised in 1991 so not far off.
Beginning-Annual-860@reddit
Amass It happened to my cousin every 3 weeks after that law passed đ
EchoesofIllyria@reddit
Just because it was criminalised then, that doesnât necessarily mean it was the norm up to that date.
Milam1996@reddit
I think youâd be quite surprised what was normal in 1996. Iâd draw your attention to the fact that R v R which established that raping your wife is actually illegal, didnât occur until 1990 and the law was altered in 1991 to reflect that. It was appealed all the way up to the House of Lords who gave final ruling changing the law.
External-Praline-451@reddit
Something being normal and something being legal is not the same thing at all. It was absolutely not concerned "normal" to rape your wife in 1996. How old were you then that you think it was normal, lol?
Lucindaxz@reddit
It was considered a "wifely duty" to have sex even if she didn't want to have sex.
I imagine many men would have raped wives who verbally consented, abused them into consenting, and had sex with wives who obviously didn't want to have sex and certainly didn't give "enthusiastic" consent.
External-Praline-451@reddit
Were you even alive then? I was and 1996 wasn't the 1950s...
Lucindaxz@reddit
Lol, yes, I was alive then.
It has only been very recently that discussions around consent, what consent means, and the importance of it, have even been a thing in popular discourse.
External-Praline-451@reddit
Yes, attitudes were different in many ways, but saying it was normal for men to rape their wives is absolute crap. And yes, I'm a woman, so I understand consent and coercion.
Stressy_messy_me@reddit
The thing is, coercion and pressuring wasn't considered rape until fairly recently. The men doing it wouldn't have considered themselves as rapists and neither would many of their families and friends. Wives were expected to put out in order to keep the peace. Many advice books would have encouraged wives to put their wants and feelings to the side to keep their husbands happy and most husbands would have been happy to go along with this because it benefits them. Please note I said most and many not all.
External-Praline-451@reddit
You're thinking about the 1950s, not the 1990s, seriously đ
Stressy_messy_me@reddit
Nope. I don't think I am.
External-Praline-451@reddit
How old were you in the 1990s?
Stressy_messy_me@reddit
Primary school age. I experienced this first hand within my own family throughout the 90s.
External-Praline-451@reddit
Ok, well then you're basing it on anecdotal experience of your family as a child. I was dating men and having sex in the 1990s, the attitudes you're describing about women being taught to please their husbands are much more old-fashioned. Sure, there was some coercion, like there is now, but it wasn't the majority.
Lucindaxz@reddit
So what exactly has your being a woman got to do with this?
You're implying with that that a man wouldn't understand consent and coercion so well...
External-Praline-451@reddit
Well yes, men don't understand consent and coercion as well, because they commit much higher rates of sexual offences and violent offences/ murder.
AskUK-ModTeam@reddit
Don't be a dick to each other, or other subreddits, places, or people.
Don't be a dick to each other, or other subreddits, places, or people. AskUK contains a variety of ages, experiences, and backgrounds - consider not everyone is operating on the same level or background as you. Listen to others before you respond, and be courteous when doing so.
Ancient-Ad9861@reddit
Well that is an EXTREMELY sexist sweeping statement about men to make
External-Praline-451@reddit
It's accurate though, as backed up by statistics and all the many patriarchal countries where women are still heavily oppressed. Sorry it hurts your feelings though đ
Ancient-Ad9861@reddit
Its absolutely not true. Your sweeping statement that all men are rapists is beyond offensive and something only a sexist pig would say
External-Praline-451@reddit
I didn't say all men for crying out loud. It was obvious from the context that I was talking about in general terms. Otherwise I wouldn't be married to a man I loved, or have lots of male friends and relatives I love and respect, if I thought all men were rapists FFS.
I was also denying that it was normal for men to rape their wives in 1996, so I'm not sure how you lept to that conclusion, except if you have a chip on your shoulder.
Ancient-Ad9861@reddit
You blatantly said men do not understand consent. That is a sexist sweeping statement. Its exactly the same as if you said coloured men are thieves and then went on to say your not racist because your friends with coloured people. You made a sexist stereo type, clear as day
External-Praline-451@reddit
Lol, I think you've got a chip on your should and a problem with reading comprehension, because I said they don't understand it as well as women, backed up by sexual violance statistics and the fact there are still many places in the world where women are systematically oppressed (but none where men are btw).
dJunka@reddit
It was all about appearances back then and pretending a lot of stuff didnât happen in your own house. Even very normal human things.
Ancient-Ad9861@reddit
First of all, smacking and raping your wife absolutely wasnât considered normal in the 80âs and 90âs. What a fucking moronic thing to say. And secondly at what point did i defend it or say it wasnât abusive. Its a fact that 150 years ago slavery was considered normal. Thats a fact but iâm not saying it was ok was i? Jesuc christ
Milam1996@reddit
Slavery wasnât legal 150 years ago and even when it was banned in England (1772) it was still considered abnormal then and people had rallied for decades calling it abhorrent. Raping your wife far less so. Lots and lots of men perfectly happy for that to be the case, same with smacking your wife.
EchoesofIllyria@reddit
OP wasnât talking about smacking your wife, they meant smacking your kids
Beginning-Annual-860@reddit
I. Some think it was even the norm 45-50 years ago.. I read about it in comics at that time.. and my parents had no qualms about smacking..
Lopsided_Snower@reddit
It wasn't the norm 25-30 years ago, I doubt it was ever the norm. I bet such a small % of the population have ever had this done, I know not one person that has ever mentioned this happening to them.
EchoesofIllyria@reddit
No it fucking wasnât.
And regarding your edit: people are jumping down your throat because youâre wrong. It may have still been done 25-30 years ago but absolutely fucking was not the norm. Iâm in that exact age range and not a single person in my age group has had it happen that I know of. And if they had it would DEFINITELY not be seen by the rest of us as normal.
Ancient-Ad9861@reddit
Well iâm in the age group who grew up 25-30 years ago and it happened to my sibling. My wife had it done once. I know of multiple of my friends who also had it or at the very least it was a common threat that it would happen if they didnt stop swearing. It was more common more like 40-50 years ago but it absolutely still happened or was at least threatened going into the nineties
EchoesofIllyria@reddit
âIt happenedâ =/= âit was the normâ
EuropoBob@reddit
Not it wasn't. I never had my mouth washed out with soap or heard of others having it happen. It is abuse now and was a use then.
BrightEyeCameDown@reddit
Well I had it in the 80s and I definitely don't consider my parents to have been abusive.
EuropoBob@reddit
I was hit with a belt a few times, whipped across the legs or bum. I think it was abusive behaviour but I would never say my parents were abusive. Forcably washing a child's mouth with soap is the same thing.
External-Praline-451@reddit
It seriously wasn't the norm. It was used as a threat to scare children, the majority of kids weren't actually subjected to it.
shelikedamango@reddit
Abuse is still abuse even if it was normal at the time
Ok_Cow_3431@reddit
My mum did when I swore, didn't fucking stop me though did it
Stabby-the-cat@reddit
Yes my Gran did it, once with a bar of soap & once with washing up liquid. It tasted awful @ made me feel really ill⌠more so with the washing up liquid, if Iâm honest.
MrHlk2020@reddit
Yes! Mid 80's, I was about 6yo. my mum had gone out and left me at home in the back garden with an older friend. We were throwing one of those polystyrene gliders that you used to get. We were swearing like troopers, "where the fuck has that gone" etc. My mum came back and heard me. She shouted me in the kitchen and told me she had a surprise for me. She told me to close my eyes and open my mouth. When I did she shoved a bar of soap in there and said "don't ever let your grandad hear you swear like that". That was it, back out throwing the glider, like an angel.
Dependent_One6034@reddit
Washed mouth out with soap, Brother was caught with a box of matches so the lit one and burned his hand, Christmas day me and my brother were excited so we got to meet the belt buckle end of the belt. Brother had a hot iron thrown at him, I was made to spend the night outside as there was a massive moth in my room, so I didn't want to be in there (I was 6). Countless uses of woodenspoons/spatulas. This went on for a while. It all stopped when we laughed. Oh you hit me with a wooden spoon? Well that didn't actually hurt at all, whats your next plan?
Laughing seemed to break my mothers spirit and she never hit us again after that.
Ahh good times.
Please note, I, nor my brother resent my parents for any of the above. Maybe we should, But pretty much everyone I know dealt with the same punishments, so wasn't really a big thing. Although it shouldn't have happened, we know not to do this to our children.
DrPuftington@reddit
My wife grew up on a very rough slum south London road in the late 1960's, bomb ruin in the middle of the street type of street. She was about four when she picked up swearing from other kids on the street. Her very strict dad heard about it and threatened her with mustard powder to rinse her mouth out with. One day he carried out his threat, and when she went back out to play and saw her mate she said to her "he's only gone and put fu**ing mustard powder in my mouth". Her mum told me this. ;-)
socialistchampers@reddit
Yep, and my partner too. And my brothers. Would never happen these days but yeah it was fucking grim, felt like I was drowning
fuck_peeps_not_sheep@reddit
My mum did it with carbolic soap once and i bit the bar and i got one hell of a slap
KevlarMak@reddit
Yeah, 4 times at catholic primary school in late 80's by nuns. 3 times with a bar of soap and once with washing-up liquid. All for blasphemy rather than swearing. I can still taste the soap.
scotsmanaajk@reddit
Yep, by my dickhead of a âDadâ. Iâm 40 now and the memory still sends shivers down my spine. My cousin and I were whispering to each other about boobies or something equally as innocent. Heâs such a prick, I stopped contact at 18
Nolsoth@reddit
Yes, it was soapy and unpleasant.
Bubbly-Weakness-4788@reddit
Yep, my mum did this to me swearing at her because she was abusing me. It was done with such force and hate I still have nightmares to this day and Iâm in my 50s.
bogyoofficial@reddit
In year 6, a teacher made a boy in my class wash his mouth out with soap. I mentioned it to my other teacher and he made me write a formal report about what happened.
owmuch@reddit
Yes until she learned you can squeeze washing up liquid in there much quicker. 0/10 do not recommend.
Minxy_T@reddit
Yep, it was super traumatizing
pixpix89@reddit
Same. I was about 5 and I still vividly remember the taste of it 31 years later.
Minxy_T@reddit
Me too! Same amount of time as well. Man, our parents really didnât get these things right did theyâŚ
HistoryDisastrous493@reddit
Did you learn your lesson?
Minxy_T@reddit
Buwahaha nooo! I am a potty mouth
keyholes@reddit
Me too. I remember my gums bled from the force of it so it was the chemical soap taste mixed with iron. I will never forget that.
PressureBeautiful515@reddit
I saw it happening to a kid at my primary school, we were aged about 6. The terrifying thing about it was that this particular teacher always seemed like one of the nicest people. There was a big sink in the corner of the classroom where we'd wash our paint brushes and stuff like that. She suddenly flipped at something he said, and held his head under the tap with one hand while pushing her other soap-filled hand into his mouth.
AneeMel@reddit
listening to kids today some still need it..
woooooooood9@reddit
Yes. My grandfather and his new wife were babysitting for me and my sisters. We got a bit silly and over excited so were told to settle down. Things got worse then apparently i said a rude word so i was dragged off to the loo and a bar of soap was shoved in my mouth... it worked and it taught me a lesson. I brought this up recently (never mentioned it in all this years) to my dad and he got angry. So i told him i hold no ill will i was being a little shit. I can still taste the dove.
KeaAware@reddit
Yeah. Didn't fucking work.
Iklepink@reddit
Yep, think I was 10, called my mum a bitch. She threatened it. So I called her a fucking bitch. One of those red and white striped bars, first and only time I ever saw one.
Nowadays we're close and call each other far worse; but with affection.
NegativeAd6437@reddit
Yes because I was choosing my underwear for the day and I was like 7 years old, and it was a pair of Peppa pig knickers but yk how that vinyl paint goes all cracked in the washing machine, well I read it as pissy pig and my step mum went ballistic at me
SharkSmiles1@reddit
Yes, my mom raced all around the house chasing me, and then caught me in the bathroom. Got a bar of Irish spring. Put her knee on my chest and rubbed it all across my braces but then again I did dare her to do it. We always had such a fun time together.
Therashser@reddit
A couple of times in the 80s yes, a bar of soap shoved in my mouth for swearing, not the worst punishments I had if honest, but not pleasant.
Firthy2002@reddit
It was an empty threat in our house although I heard stories of kids getting it for real.
Considering my reaction when I did accidentally get soapy water in my mouth from my own doing, the threat was enough.
syorks73@reddit
Teaspoon of washing up liquid, Morning Fresh as I recall.
Aggravating_Lab209@reddit
Best way to start your day!
Polly_____@reddit
Me once it wasn't pleasant, didnt stop me swearing đ
Bhafc1901@reddit
Wasnât me, but my little brother, around a dinner table with my family, circa 2014
BatsWaller@reddit
Yep, by my dad, with Fairy liquid, but for wearing a red lipstick Iâd bought with my pocket money. I was about ten at the time. Not a nice memory.
notanadultyadult@reddit
I have a vague memory that my mum did actually try it on me once.
Terrible_Bluebird540@reddit
Not me but a stupid idiot boy aged about 10 in primary school, decided that throwing stones was great fun.
Until a stone hit my sister aged six and cut her head open. And he said "Damn." He was punished with washing his mouth out & the slipper. Later on I kicked him in the balls. I did not get punished. He really was a horrid boy.
Craig1974@reddit
No. That was just a threat.
Reesy@reddit
This thread is like the worst thing I've read in a long time.
valdearg@reddit
Yes, my older brother told my mum that I'd sworn, little shit.
Wasn't fun, didn't work, I swear all the time now.
Poison1990@reddit
Yep. My childminder gave me a little squirt of fairy liquid. It was fowl but I got the message. I think I started swearing after binging Eminem. Maybe I was quoting funny lyrics or something.
Obviously I'd never do anything like that to a kid today, but I don't judge my childminder too harshly. It was the 90s.
fernofry@reddit
I wonder where the kids who ate tide pods are now
Mikon_Youji@reddit
I would imagine they'd be dead.
YchYFi@reddit
Dead.
JenJMLC@reddit
They're no longer around đ
Obvious_Flamingo3@reddit
I have a weird memory from primary school where, when we were little, the boys would swear, and the teacher sometimes told them really sternly to go off to the toilets and wash their mouth out with soap and water
And they always just went off and did it. It was so weird
MPD1987@reddit
Yup. And hot sauce
sassyfrassatx@reddit
Yes, but from Texas.
Cozmic_Fool1931@reddit
I used to get liquid soap my older brother used to get the imperial leather bar of soap đ
Lucymouse36@reddit
Mustard in our mouths
RegretEasy8846@reddit
No but I did it to myself when I was about 9, to see if it was that bad⌠it was.
AnonymousTimewaster@reddit
Happened once. Can't remember exactly why or when except I was a teenager and probably was asking for it. My dad repeatedly threatened it and I never believed him lol
Wackylew@reddit
This happened to my wife, and they still were shocked when she cut contact with them. Bunch of wankers
MelodicAd2213@reddit
Yes and my mum had the temerity to serve it up in a plastic tea cup from my toy tea set. It was for having said yum yum bubblegum, stick it up your motherâs bum.
mysteriousmistress66@reddit
Not from what I remember, but I did used to, voluntarily, brush my teeth with soap. My logic was "if soap makes your hands clean, soap must also make your teeth clean!"
a3minutehero@reddit
Nope, I did for lying once though.
floralflourish@reddit
Yep, green shield soap when I was about 7
floralflourish@reddit
So 2005
SafiyaO@reddit
Yes. With a big bar of Lux too. It was not nice.
fightmilk5905@reddit
Yes, probably 1999.. Mum was a bit rufless back then.
Fabulous_Cicada_4219@reddit
must be a good way to nuke your gut flora?
luckyowl91@reddit
Yes forced to take a bite out of a bar of soap. Then I threw up and got forced to clean it up then had to sit on concrete with my arms above my head for an hour as punishment for making a mess. traumatised me massively!!
T4rch@reddit
Wtf
HesitantBrobecks@reddit
Yeah so this kind of thing gets thrown around online wayyyy too much, but I'm pretty sure stress positions are actually war crimes (when done on POW)
luckyowl91@reddit
Just one of many examples, My mum and stepdad where pretty psycho. Abused us pretty bad growing up. went low contact then after having my own kids went zero contact. Realised I didn't want them associated with people like that at all.
Simbooptendo@reddit
My dad made me bite down on a bar of soap
JonathnJms2829@reddit
No, my mum would dip her finger in chili powder, then put it in my mouth.
Imtryingforheckssake@reddit
Yes once or maybe twice, late 80s so I was still in junior school. Looking back I have to wonder why my mum didn't think it was seriously fucked up, then again I did eperience some other punishments that show more that my mum had lost control of herself more than she was actually trying to discipline me.
bekahfromearth@reddit
Yes, as punishment for swearing and biting. I was a feral child.
Status-Sign-1495@reddit
happened to my mum
ddmf@reddit
My old school used to force you to gargle with TCP if you were caught swearing. God I fucking love the taste of TCP.
Duke-Margherita@reddit
Told my brothers to fuck off mother fuckers as i spead past on my bike, they ran and told my dad, i got introduced to imperial leather.
gc4170@reddit
Yeah my nan forced a huge lump of imperial leather in my mouth in 1977 for saying 'shit'. I was 7 and I never really liked her much after that.
RockasaurusFlex@reddit
Yep. Spun it round in my mouth too, chunks of it between my teeth.
Because I said "aaahhh SHIT!" when a neighbour kid smashed a metal bar on the back of my head as I was coming back from school.
I told my wife after a couple of years of being together and she cried for about 2 hours and doesn't speak to my mum now đ
miIk-skin@reddit
Yes, my grandmother dragged me up the stairs by a fistful of my hair when I was about 7-8 and did it.
I've never seen the old bitch since I last left her home and I won't be present at her funeral.Â
Whodeytim@reddit
I think we have similar stories mate. Hope you're okay
miIk-skin@reddit
Straight up child abuse seems to be a continuous thread of the 80's and 90's.
It's why I'm totally opposed to be smacking children today. Doesn't teach them to behave, only teaches them that violence is a legitimate method of obtaining what they want.Â
Kewoowaa@reddit
A little snack never did us any harm!
/s very very obviously. If I hear my mother say that once more Iâm tempted to throw my moral stance out the window and punch her.
saxshullaballoo@reddit
I didn't, but my brother did. I just got black eyes and things
T4rch@reddit
Black eyes are a much better form of discipline, definitely.... Wtf!
T4rch@reddit
No, my dad would just call me pissy eyes, then piss in my eyes. He'd then say, "Now, if you don't want to be shitty eyes, take out the trash"
No-Bodybuilder-5352@reddit
Yes in primary school in the 2000s a teacher did :/
Not_Wrong_Tho@reddit
Of course not. My parents weren't great, but they weren't assholes.
Dizzy_Charcoal@reddit
my mum did it to my brother once (he called her a name in front of his friends) afaik it was the only time she ever punished him for anything
TransatlanticMadame@reddit
Yep - raised in the US though.
Elegant-Mission-4470@reddit
Wrong subreddit then
boudicas_shield@reddit
Not really. Immigrants do live in the UK, many for decades despite having grown up elsewhere. We still belong to the general UK community because we live in the UK.Â
Elegant-Mission-4470@reddit
Comment was about being a kid in the UK. They weren't. Comment wasn't applicable.Â
Sea-Still5427@reddit
No, but I remember seeing an older female teacher do it to someone else when we were maybe 6, so early 70s. Think he had learning difficulties.
jinglesan@reddit
Yes - bar of carbolic soap jabbed into my mouth a few times at the age of 4-5 and made to hold it there. It's a horrible taste and feeling that lingers for days. I think my mum stopped after my dad saw the tiny tooth marks so she switched to making us eat a teaspoon of hot chilli powder or having a mouthful of salt (both worse). Then from about 7 onwards for swearing we'd get the belt, then the buckle end, then the buckle sideways.
I was born in '82 so this wasn't really considered abuse at the time (although it clearly is). My best mate got a fork stabbed into his arm by his mum, so in relative terms it just seemed normal.
Able_Wedding_6681@reddit
Yep. Held down and force fed. Also with mustard and curry powder.
Odd-Accident-3287@reddit
Threatened but never happened , In our house it was just summit ur Mum would say if u Swore to make Us not lol
jaBroniest@reddit
Imperial leather tasted the best.
OrderWooden@reddit
Yes once and I didn't even swear!
Mr_Benevenstanciano@reddit
Yeah my parents did when I was about 7/8 for telling my dad to shutup twice. Worth itÂ
forgottenoldusername@reddit
Yeah my mum and grandad tried when I was about 8. Went into an absolute rage and smashed the bathroom mirror. Zero regrets.
Old_Champion824@reddit
parents used to put pepper on tongue when we used to swear as kids.
Busy_Entertainment40@reddit
Yes my Nan did it to me, I still donât swear now. I was about 7 and I still can remember the taste of the soap.
Sea-Payment-8989@reddit
As a kid I was told to wash my mouth out with soap and water, when I swore.
I can rember my dad hitting his hand while knocking some wood off a wall and saying fâŚ..g h⌠a few days after that I fell on the school playground and repeated the same words, which led to an instant caning. The school wrote to my parents outlining my âcrimeâ and my mouth was washed out for me by my mum and then my dad clipped me round the ears.
Since then I say the words quietly to myself.
dan-72@reddit
Yup, to this day I still donât swear as it was fucking awful!
ddttm@reddit
đ¤đ
Poullafouca@reddit
I had mine washed out for me by a schoolteacher.
Dismal_Fox_22@reddit
My mum brought this horrible gritty green soap, it was a specific brand or type. It was only brought for this purpose, she would make us not down before pulling in out so that our teeth would shave the soap into our mouths. She later went on to train as a child protection social worker. She denies ever doing things like that and becomes irrational and defensive if any of us bring it up
Viking-Bastard-XIV@reddit
Yep. Absolutely traumatised by it.
Primary school teacher for blasphemy, when I was 5 - so about 1982.
riotlady@reddit
Nope but saw it happen to a family friend. My parents were wildly inconsistent about a lot of stuff but reasonably chill about swearing.
14JRJ@reddit
My mom did it once. Foul
Whodeytim@reddit
My dad's mom did it to me and it is partially why I have no interest in having any relationship with the toxic cunt out with enjoying her funeral. Her character and personality also adds to that.
bentleybasher@reddit
Yes. +1 to green fairy liquid. Uncle and his partner thought I deserved it. đ bear in mind they were two potty mouthed mofoâs themselves.
ffsdomagain@reddit
Mustard for me, took me 18 years to re try it. No such ting as trauma.
/s in case anyone reads it wrong.
McGez@reddit
Nope. But watched my cousin get it done to him. That was about 33 years ago.
Also watched another cousin getting beaten with a slipper. I think it all plays a part in why I'm such a people-pleaser today.
Kinda wish my mum kept me home more as a kid đ¤ˇđ˝ââď¸
Reasonable-Ad1170@reddit
Yes and if I seen green fairy liquid I can remember the taste. Wasnât my parent it was my brother that gave me it.
wubbalubba96@reddit
Yes
I had forgot what I had even said and whilst in the bath my mum shoved a full bar of soap into my mouth
Tasted grim and I learned fuck all
haggis_catcher-@reddit
Was a constant threat lol happy times
Puzzleheaded_Turn887@reddit
Yes, my sister in law!! Awful.
Cartographer_Hopeful@reddit
Was a regular punishment for my brother and I, for anything my dad didn't like us saying
TheSmokeyGiant031@reddit
Never đ swore like a docker ever since this threat
spherical-chicken@reddit
No, but was a common threat when I was a kid, as well as being threatened to be glued to my seat.
bannanawaffle13@reddit
I did it to myself, I am neurodivergent and didnt realise it was just a saying so thought if I swore I had to wash my mouth out with soap.
GirlMcGirlface@reddit
Our teachers would do it at Primary school as punishment. Corporal punishment was still allowed when I started school.
koaka-koala@reddit
Yes and it was worse because they put soap on my toothbrush and then brushed my teeth with it whilst holding my chin up.
ShinyHeadedCook@reddit
Yep and used to get beat with a wooden spoon, belts, canes and slippers and shoes, failing that just hands. The 80s made us who we are today. Fucked up adults
Current_Thing2244@reddit
I had it done by my aunt because I told her that her husband was molesting me.
SavageRabbitX@reddit
Once.
TheRealSlabsy@reddit
Yes, Buttermilk. Sounds and looks delicious but really, really isn't.
Computer_General@reddit
Yeah, found an expletive in a dictionary once, and tried explaining to my mum that because of that it couldn't be a swear word. Apparently I was wrong!
Still swear... just not in front of parents...
No-Calligrapher-7415@reddit
No but I was threatened with the nit nurse's nasty shampoo...
BananasAreCrack@reddit
Nope but I drank fairy liquid as a kid coz I'm smart like that.
MxJamesC@reddit
Yea me too. "Cleaned" a straw with raw fairy liquid. Probably rinsed the outside and went straight for the strawberry nesquick. Didn't do that twice.
WhichWitchisThis@reddit
My mum used to say it jokingly as a threat for swearing. We were messing about once when I was around 10 & for some reason she said it. We both went into the bathroom laughing & I was threatening to do it & she was telling me not to & I ended up doing it accidentally lol. It tasted disgusting & we both laughed harder & she called me a silly cow 𤣠she never said it to me again after that though!
CompleteWhittle@reddit
A woman I used to know did this to her 7 year old, who was an absolute terror by the way (but then so was his mum). He swore at her, she marched him up stairs and forced a bar of soap into his mouth. She said she instantly felt very guilty about doing this and gave him some toothpaste to take the taste away. Apparently soap and toothpaste are basically the same thing. She said it produced some weird reaction which burned him. It didn't stop him from swearing either, little shit.
toby1jabroni@reddit
Yeah, didnât realise how messed up this was when it happened!
fvalconbridge@reddit
Yes this was a punishment in my family but my childhood left me with cptsd so đŹ
thegerbilmaster@reddit
Remember my mam doing it once. Didn't work. She didn't do it again.
badger1234321@reddit
My dad did it once with a bar of soap, tasted rank. Pretty sure that was the same time he made me sleep outside in the garden as punishment too (I remember being quite scared rather than it being a good thing, was dark with bugs everywhere).
Worst thing is I only said 'sod' which isn't a swear in my eyes, and my brother had dobbed me in (think he'd said I said something worse than sod too). Overall wouldn't recommend
remmy84@reddit
My friend did. Before you think sure she did, her family was rough. She absolutely did. Her mum was a good old fashioned physical punishment type of lady
Rabbit-1989@reddit
Yes, it was the yellow Sunlight laundry soap.
Ok_Net4562@reddit
No but my cousin was always threatened with mustard. And one day i saw them do it. It was very sad, she cried a lot.
valhon99@reddit
Only once . Pears soap. Frequently threatened with it . Canât look at âBubblesâ without remembering the trauma
New-Tap-2027@reddit
Yeah has to leave teeth marks as proof!
Conscious-Mango1917@reddit
Yeah, fairy liquid portion by my mum, it was 50 odd years ago
hjw5774@reddit
Yeah, at first it was a soap coated flannel. Then the flannel was omitted from the process.Â
My greatest annoyance was the fact the swear word was "bloody", and in our religious household it was assumed that I was truncating "by our lady".Â
Ended up just brushing my teeth with soap as it was good enough to clean hands.Â
BG3restart@reddit
I very much enjoyed watching my older sister do this to my older brother once.
Aggravating_Speed665@reddit
Yeh few times
britinnit@reddit
Yeah my Grandad did it once. He died when I was 5 so I was at least that old. 35 now.
TheD4rkSide@reddit
My mum did it to me and my siblings.
Educational_Owl_9299@reddit
Yes, my dad did this to me when I was about 4 years old. It is my earliest memory. I overheard some older children outside our house drop an f bomb. I came inside and said it in front of my parents and my dad said if I said it again he'd wash my mouth out with soap. I didnt know what it meant, so I said it again... you get the gist.
DoubleXFemale@reddit
Yes, Wrightâs Coal Tar.
EatingCoooolo@reddit
Nah, hot sauce. Now Iâm addicted.
hornet-prodder-214@reddit
Oh, yes it was wash your mouth out with soap and water and if I didn't it was done for me on many occasions, even though I had a reasonable defence of my dad swears, so why can't I?
Kewoowaa@reddit
No but I had my teeth brushed with salt
JohnLennonsNotDead@reddit
Yeah by my uncle, it did not taste like soap though.
ultimateberk@reddit
I did once, it was not enjoyable
NotAndyBurnham@reddit
Yeah my mum did it to me once.
-----_____-_@reddit
Happened to my older brother. It worked. Never back chatted or anything else of the sort. Taught me and my sister as well
Super-Craig@reddit
No, but then I never swore as a child, but then again we could never afford the excessive waste of soap.
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