Mom Backed for Cutting Off Friends 'Insulting' Teen Son Behind Her Back

The internet has sided with a mom after her reaction to hearing her friends talking badly about her teenage son.

In a post shared Saturday on Reddit's popular r/AmITheA**hole forum, the mother shared the story which has since received over 24,000 upvotes.

"My 18-year-old son Eric just graduated high school," explained Reddit user u/throwaw__ay6: "I'm very proud of him because he has ADHD and school has always been a struggle for him but he's going to college and his future is promising."

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that ADHD is one of the most common neurodevelopmental disorders of childhood. ADHD is characterized by having trouble paying attention or controlling impulsive behaviors, and being overly active.

While causes and risk factors for ADHD are unknown, current research suggests that genetics play an important role. Treated with behavior therapy and medication, there are plenty of ways for ADHD to be managed successfully.

Filled with pride for her son after his graduation, this mom was out with two friends who both have children of a similar age to her son. She explained: "I excused myself to the washroom and right before I was about to go back into the room when I overheard them say that I must be so disappointed in Eric—disappointed because he's not studying law or medicine, etc. like their kids."

Overhearing the conversation, the mom kept listening: "They continued to talk about how he barely graduated and then they made a few odd jokes about how Eric's probably going to follow in my footsteps and marry a rich older lady," she said: "They talked about my son's 'reputation' and laughed about how he clearly cares more about his face than his future, just like his mother."

"This hurt me a lot. I was heartbroken," wrote the poster: "Not only were they insulting me, but my son as well."

When she walked back into the room, the friends were silent. The mom did not mention what she heard but instead decided she would never hang out with them again.

When arriving home, her husband asked if anything was wrong, and after the ordeal, she said she began to cry and told her husband everything.

"He was really angry," she said: "He had invited them and their families to go on a quick two-day trip and he called their husbands and canceled. When they asked why he told them that there was no way he was paying to take two bitter mean girls that insult his wife and son on vacation."

After her husband confronted the families, the two women called upset, asking the mom to rethink the decision and claiming they were just joking around.

"They said that I should've talked to them instead of crying to my husband like a weak a** b**ch," explained the poster.

"That stung a little and now I'm wondering, am I the a**hole for not being straight up and crying to my husband instead?" she asked: "The two think I am and my sister agrees that I should've dealt with it myself and I went too far telling my husband."

Talking behind someone else's back is not uncommon, but why do people do it? In an article published by Psychology Today, behavioral analyst John R. Schafer suggested that: "People like to gossip because it gives them a sense that they possess secret information about another person, which gives them a sense of power."

Schafer writes: "If knowledge is power, gossip is turbocharged power. In order to display their power and reinforce their egos, people must share information with other individuals."

With more than 3,000 replies to the story, the mom was overwhelmingly backed online with Reddit users rushing to share their reactions to the story.

"Just block them and never think about them again," said one comment. Meanwhile, another reply said: "They're shaming you for relying on your partner for emotional support? Sis, they were never your friends."

"With friends like that, who needs enemies?" said another commenter.

"NTA [not the a**hole]," said another reply: "Don't second guess yourself because of two awful fake friends like that."

Newsweek has reached out to u/throwaw__ay6 for comment. We were unable to verify the details of this case.