Parents usually want the best for their child. Sometimes they are forced to show tough love when nothing else works. A 35-year-old woman whose Reddit profile has since been deleted found herself in a similar situation when her 14-year-old son started misbehaving. She was forced to take tough measures to get her son to talk to her. She turned to Reddit to ask people if she had done the right thing.
“I do everything I can for my son and make sure he has everything he needs. Lately he’s been behaving a little badly at home and at school, so I decided to sit down with him to find out what was going on,” the mother explained. The son is the woman’s only child and his parents are still together. “I was worried if it might have something to do with me or his father, but he didn’t let up.” She even asked him if there was something wrong at school and if he needed her help. “I was afraid there would be bullying at his school and was ready to send him to another school if necessary,” the mother said.
“He said there was no bullying and he had no problems, he just felt like 14-year-olds should freak out a little,” the woman revealed. The mother made it clear that such behavior was not acceptable in her house. Among other things, he verbally abused his parents and teachers. “I tried so hard to discipline him as best I could. After a bit of an argument with my son, he said, ‘My life would be better if I didn’t have a mother,'” she said. The mother was pretty hurt, but she went on with her day. “I made dinner for me and his father. Not for my son. When my son smelled food, he came downstairs and asked where he was. I replied, ‘I made dinner for me and your father. Since life is easier without a mother, there is something in the freezer that can be reheated,'” she continued.
“He stormed into his room and didn’t come out until this morning. Normally I would take him to school, but today I didn’t,” the mother said. “He came downstairs expecting his breakfast, which I make for him every morning, but there was none. He said, ‘Where’s my breakfast?’ I said, ‘Usually your mother makes it for you. But if life is easier without breakfast, you have to make your own breakfast. Besides, you can take the bus to school and back home.'” The son cursed, made himself some cereal, took the bus and called his grandmother, the woman’s mother-in-law. “I received many calls saying I was a terrible mother, that I was starving my child and that I was petty,” the mother revealed.
The woman wanted her child to be more grateful but wondered if she was being petty. She later posted many updates sharing that everything was fine between them. He had been “acting out” due to the bad influence at his school. People supported the mom in the comments. u/Shrimp-34 wrote, “It’s not like you really deprived him of anything. He still had access to food and a way to get to school. It was definitely petty but he was not hurt in any way and maybe sometimes you have to fight fire with fire.” u/Enough-Classroom-400 commented, “I don’t think she’s being petty. She gave her son exactly what he asked for. At best it is malicious indulgence. I’d also call the mother-in-law and tell her to stay out of your family’s business.” u/MediumAlternative372 noted, “Cautionary example of ‘be careful what you wish for’ in action. Not bad parenting and it seems you got the message across.”
