11 People Who Take Parent Control To Another Level

Parenting often comes with a hefty set of rules and methods. Everyone has their preferred method, but some parents may take it a bit too far, especially in terms of control. Their children reveal just how extremely strict their moms and dads can be—and some of their stories are truly jaw-dropping.

1.

I’d been studying all day and decided to hit a friend’s party to unwind. When I showed up, my friend looked shocked and slammed the door in my face. I was so confused—until I checked my phone.

My mom, who was out of town, had called the host before I even got there to “politely” let them know he could not let me in. I guess she hacked my calendar or something. She even told my friend that if he let me in, she’d call his mom and make sure he got grounded! That’s not even the craziest part.

When she got home, she had a PowerPoint presentation titled “Why That Was Dumb” ready to go. I had to sit through 12 slides and answer a questionnaire about it before I could go back to my room.

2.

I am taking my son Jack (m8) on an overseas vacation later this year. My ex-spouse Richard (45m) has been saying negative things about the trip and is now insistent we place an AirTag in Jack’s shoe so he can track him from his phone.

It’s created a lot of back and forth with him being very upset. I’ve traveled with Jack many times without incident, but the badgering from my ex is making me question myself. © Historical-Safe-7262 / Reddit

3.

My mom was very strict about the ratings of movies and video games. One year for Christmas, a relative gave me a copy of Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire for the Nintendo 64. It was a T (for teen) rated game, and I wouldn’t be turning 13 for another 4 weeks. My mom had my dad drive me to Toys’R’Us to return the game.

We walked into the store and over to the games, and he had me pick out an E (for everyone) rated game. We proceeded to check out and as we went to the car he handed me not only the new game but the game we were supposed to have returned to buy it as well and told me not to let her catch me playing it. © allou_stat / Reddit

4.

I was/am not allowed to do the following: use the washing machine, wash the dishes, pull the weeds, vacuum outside of my room, I must ask to use the vacuum, I can’t cook a meal, I can’t have the remote, I get instructed on how to use the microwave that I’ve been using for years and if I ask where we are going I get told “out”. © mehtotheworld / Reddit

5.

We couldn’t go sledding during the winter — or any other season, obviously—because my mom didn’t want snow slogged into the garage. So, no snow playing of any kind, really. Never built a snowman. Did go sledding when I was an adult. It’s pretty great.

All of our clothes in our closet had to be arranged by color, descending in order by shade. So, for example, midnight blue at one end of the blue section, and tarheel blue at the other. There was a system in place for colors, too, so if the yellows were by the purple’s, for example, there’d be consequences.

No shoes on in the house under any circumstances. Was super uncomfortable when my brother’s friend, who had prosthetic legs and always had shoes on, came over and didn’t take his shoes off. Mom got really mad and confronted him. © gregosaurusrex / Reddit

6.

I wasn’t allowed to talk to boys. I hung out with my friend one day, and she invited a couple of guys. At first, I was worried, but shrugged it off. What they won’t know won’t hurt them. My mom called me and one of the boys’ voices sounded over.

My mom went quiet for a few seconds before she said, “Dinner’s at 8, don’t be late.” When I came back home, she was sitting at the dining table and slid my plate in front of me and said nothing for a while. Then, without looking up, she asked, “Who did you go out with?”

She then spent the entire dinner listing cautionary tales—from her friend in high school who “lost her future” to a distant cousin who “ran off and was never the same.” Each story was more dramatic than the last, full of vague warnings and moral panic. From that day on, she’d casually peek at my phone when it buzzed, ask for my friends’ parents’ numbers, and once even signed me up for an all-girls extracurricular club “just for fun.”

7.

I wasn’t allowed to go out, like ever. If I was gonna hang out with someone it had to be on the weekend planned at least a week ahead, and my parents had to meet their parents and drive me there. They would come get me before the sun went down.

Not a rule, but if I got up to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night or was reading because I couldn’t sleep, my mom would come screaming up the stairs, “WHY ARE YOU UP??” © Unknown Author/ Reddit

8.

I wasn’t allowed to put posters on my wall. I’m not sure whether it was to protect the wall or some other silly reason. All I wanted to put up was a cute poster of a cuddly seal. So I ended up sticking it behind my door.

My dad once told me that he was going to “ground” me due to my poor performance in school. So I simply responded with, “Go ahead, ground me. It’s not like I go anywhere anyway.” His dead silence after that was an acknowledgement that he knew I had a point there. © starshinedrop / Reddit

9.

I was only allowed to play video games on holidays. It was the weirdest rule because my parents would always get me and my brother n64 and Game Boy games for Xmas/Birthdays. But then we would hardly be able to play them.

And then they would get mad at us for just playing video games the entire day on Easter/Xmas/Birthdays when they wanted us to “spend time with the family”. We used to sneak around sometimes by taking our G-boys and running into the forest to play. © vaccumshoes / Reddit

10.

I wasn’t allowed to go over to a friend’s house if there were males there. Didn’t matter if it’s their brother or dad, no males could be in the house. I also wasn’t allowed to have male friends, or have friends over at our house.

My dad wanted to send me to an all-girls school, but my mom wouldn’t let him. My brother (3 years older than me) could do whatever he wanted, including sleeping over at his girlfriend’s house starting at 14. © thatgirlwiththathing / Reddit

11.

My aunt was overly protective of my older cousin to the point where if we were tossing a football around in the front yard, and it went into the street, I would have to go get it because he was not allowed in the street.

We grew up in the suburbs on a quiet, seldom used street, and this policy lasted until he was 16 years old. © hankbaumbach / Reddit

It’s no surprise that strict parents have rebellious kids. With these over-the-top rules, kids are bound to want some taste of freedom. A loving relationship between parent and child needs to carry trust and understanding. Here are stories proving how a parent’s love can be unstoppable.