A viral TikTok trend has parents using the name 'Jessica' to halt toddler tantrums in their tracks. The hack, which involves pretending to call for a person named Jessica, has been shown to instantly distract crying children.
In one widely viewed clip, Tiffani Ortega's son was crying in his car seat when his father called out, 'Jessica, come here.' The toddler immediately stopped crying and looked around for the mysterious Jessica. The father continued, 'Are you going to stop crying? Because Jessica is coming.' The child responded 'yes' and calmed down completely.
Another video by Evanthia showed her daughter running and screaming, but after Evanthia asked, 'Where are you, Jessica?' the child fell silent and searched the room. The trick has amassed millions of views, with commenters joking that 'Jessica' is the new 'boogeyman' for toddlers.
Dr. Deborah Gilboa, a family physician and resilience expert, explained to Today.com that the method works because it disrupts a toddler's focus. 'They have more perseverance and object permanence,' she said, meaning they don't easily forget what upset them. But calling a random name creates an unexpected break, making the brain think, 'Wait, what?'
The trend follows the recent use of 'Jessica' by Gen Z as a replacement for the insult 'Karen,' though the parenting hack appears to be unrelated to that slang.
