Parents Slammed for Causing Teenager to Burn Out from Playing Five Sports

A 16-year-old girl is receiving praise from commenters online after revealing she called out her parents for forcing her twin brother to do five sports.

The Original Poster (OP), known as u/throwaway_accnt_0, posted about the situation in Reddit's popular "Am I The A**hole" forum where it received more than 9,500 upvotes and 600 comments. The post can be found here.

Teen Stressors

According to a survey conducted by Mental Health America, nearly half of 11- to 17-year-old respondents said they were "very stressed out."

The top five stressors reported by respondents were:

• Receiving good grades
• Feeling lonely
• Body appearance
• Juggling responsibilities
• Prepping for the future.

More than 60 percent of respondents said they felt stressed about balancing school work, jobs, and extracurricular activities such as sports and clubs.

An individual's mental and physical health can be affected if they often experience high levels of stress. Some signs that stress is getting out of control include changes in appetite, sleep and mood, as well as physical aches and increased anxiety.

'Constantly Seeking Approval'

In the post titled "AITA for calling out my dad and stepdad?" the 16-year-old poster said she does cheer and her twin brother Cody plays several sports.

"We do these activities because we enjoy them but Cody also puts in a lot of effort because he's constantly seeking approval from our dad AND stepdad," the post read. "The two don't care for each other, but are somehow the best of friends when it comes to Cody's sports."

The OP said Cody plays five different sports since their dad likes hockey and lacrosse and their stepdad prefers football and basketball. He also plays baseball because both of them enjoy the sport.

"If he ever dares to quit a single one, one of them will throw a riot or accuse him of playing favourites," the post read. "It's so dumb. Sometimes Cody's schedules clash or get so overwhelming to the point where he'll lay on his bedroom floor for hours and dissociate. It's been like this since he was like 10."

'Men Being Men'

The girl said their mom and stepmom think it's "men being men" and that Cody probably doesn't care since boys enjoy sports. But the OP said there surely needs to be a limit when it comes to Cody's extracurricular activities.

Recently, OP and her family were having lunch with their older sister who was leaving for college. After lunch, their sister asked if they wanted to join her at the mall and the OP said yes while Cody was told by their dad that he has baseball practice.

The OP added that the practice was not required and was more of an informal opportunity to strengthen his skills.

"Cody tried asking if he could sit out one day since he hasn't missed a single practice of anything in his life," the post read. "But our stepdad joined our dad's 'practice makes perfect' speech and backed out."

Eventually, both their dad and stepdad began talking about how OP never misses practice and has the trophies to show for it.

'I Call Bulls**t'

"I thought this was ridiculous. I've missed plenty of practices and Cody has more awards than me," the post read. "I asked them if they were being serious and told them what I just mentioned."

The OP said her dad told her to be quiet but instead she called him and their stepdad "losers" and told them that Cody is a "human being with limits" and not "a doll they can program or play with."

She said both men seemed embarrassed and that her dad told her she was disrespectful while her mom said she was "reading too much" into the situation because she doesn't understand the men's "dynamics."

"I call bulls**t but they're all saying I'm in the wrong and need to apologize," the post read. "My sister agrees with me but says I was disrespectful. Cody doesn't wanna talk about it. AITA?"

Redditor Reactions

More than 600 users commented on the post, many praising the OP for standing up for her brother.

"NTA, it needed to be said and it's sad that no one has said it before. Good for you for standing up for him," one user commented. "When your brother has a breakdown because of the pressure your dad & stepdad will be there all confused as to why that's happened."

"NTA are sports for enjoyment or to fulfill the fantasies of dads and stepdads?" another user commented.

"Somebody has to stand up for your brother and since both mums in this scenario fail to do so, your brother is lucky to have a sister like you!" another commented. "Both your dad and stepdad are the AHs in this scenario."

One user claiming to be a high school basketball coach commented that if they notice a kid tries out for their team while having that many other responsibilities, they'll ask him his motivations for being there.

"If he's only there because a parent wants him to be there and really doesn't want to be there, I'll cut him so he can have at least some time that's his own," the comment read. "I don't care how good the player is. If he's only there because other people want him to be, I'll make the 'Dad, I don't want to play basketball' conversation easy for him."

Newsweek reached out to u/throwaway_accnt_0 for comment.

Other Viral Posts

Another man recently got criticized on Mumsnet after he ditched his wife and kids to go out and play sports while another woman was slammed for kidnapping her grandson she'd never met.

In another viral post from Reddit's popular "Am I The A**hole" forum, a man was praised for defending his wife after she cursed out his mother.