10 Embarrassing Things Parents Did That Still Haunt Their Kids

Parents are often a source of unconditional love, support and occasionally, intense public humiliation. While most mean well, there are moments when their attempts to bond, protect, or simply have fun spiral into unforgettable disasters for their children.

• I asked my mom to send me a photo of the swimsuit she bought for me since I couldn’t make it to the store. She said, “No problem!” and snapped a picture... but instead of the swimsuit, it was her—wearing the suit, striking poses in front of the bathroom mirror. She accidentally sent it to my swim team group chat, including my coach and teammates.
  The moment I saw the message pop up, my heart stopped. My coach replied with a shocked emoji, then awkwardly said, “Nice suit, Mrs. J...” At practice the next day, my coach avoided looking at me and made a weird joke about “family swimwear styles.”

• When I was a senior in college, I was working a part-time job. They offered to make my current position full-time once I graduated. Before I got a chance to respond, my father found out and contacted my supervisor expressing concerns about the offer and the fact I was still in college. How my father found out still boggles my mind, but when my supervisor told me that my dad called him was probably the most embarrassing thing either of my parents have done. © Wesman284 / Reddit

• Bought me a diary, encouraging me to write in it. Later stole said diary, broke the lock off, forged a bunch of made up “crushes” in there, and then read it aloud at the dinner table. © Unknown author / Reddit

• It was my 16th birthday and my family went to a fancy Italian restaurant. The staff came over to sing happy birthday to me, and my dad started singing along loudly in a bad Italian opera kind of accent (we are not Italian).
  The staff was so stunned they just stopped singing. The other customers around us laughed and applauded, and the staff just walked away. I was mortified. © Original_Score / Reddit

• I was 13 and waiting for a ride with my sister and parents at Dollywood. Across the way, two very pretty girls about my age were smiling at me.
  I smiled back and acted all cool because I was a skater boy with skater hair and my vision street wear and some shirt with a skull on it or something. It was working too. The girls whispered to each other and giggled, and one even waved at me.
  Then my mom reached her hand in my face and popped a pimple right there, in public. The girls were aghast. I was humiliated. I have never forgiven her. © Brainstick / Reddit

• Mom made me call my 8th grade social studies teacher at home to ask if I could use him as a job reference. He lived with his parents still, and I asked for him by first name.
  He waited for me at my locker the next day to tell me never to phone his house again (parents’ house) and never call him by his first name again. Didn’t get the job either. Mom denies this ever happened and claims she would never demand I do something so strange. © kissLarryBirdsbelly / Reddit

• Every time I made a mistake, big or small, my mom would tell my grandma. Then my grandma would proceed to tell the entire family so when we had meet ups, I would never hear the end of it. I’m still insecure about that to this very day. © badartpun / Reddit

• 10th birthday, school is holding a McDonald’s fundraiser. Everyone is there. Sister works at the McDonald’s and gets you a special cake for your birthday. Life is peaking.
  Mom is carrying out the cake with everyone from my class watching and drops the cake straight on the ground. Not only is 10-year-old me devastated, but my mom then proceeds to start scooping cake off the floor onto plates and insisting that people eat it. Mom isn’t allowed to carry cakes anymore. © Dresweezy / Reddit

• My mom sent in pictures of my awkward middle school page for the “baby pictures” section of my senior yearbook. Everyone else had pictures from the ages of 0-5, mine were middle school aged when I just looked generally awkward and terrible. To this day I have no idea what she was thinking or how she misunderstood the point of those pages so badly.
  The worst part is that I moved to a new town junior year, so the people I graduated with never would have known about my awkward middle school phase if it weren’t for that yearbook. Which everyone will keep and look back on for the rest of their lives. © halloweenh***x / Reddit

• 3rd through 6th grade, my mom was convinced that my friends would come over and steal my toys. My mom would then search my friends’ backpacks and pockets before they left my house. I didn’t end up with very many friends. © Unknown author / Reddit

While these stories may seem over-the-top, they reflect a universal truth: no one is immune to being embarrassed by their parents. Whether it’s a misguided attempt to be relatable, an accidental overshare, or a full-blown public spectacle, these moments often become the anecdotes people laugh about later.