Teenagers often face pressure to stick with activities that drain them more than they energize them.

For one high schooler, football became more misery than motivation as his sophomore season began.

So his mom made a decision she thought would spare him more stress, but his dad feared quitting too early was sending the wrong message.

Read on for the full story.

AITA For Letting my son quit football?

My (44F) son (14M) plays football and he’s a sophomore. He played for the first time his freshman year and liked it, even though he told me he didn’t play much.

The start of the newest season didn’t kick off in the best way.

Since he didn’t play much, he’s back on the freshman team again as a sophomore. They’ve only been practicing a few days, and my son says he doesn’t like the coaches.

I watch some of his practices from the car, and it seems all the coach does is yell at him even though “it’s not personal.”

So she decides to let her kid make the decision for himself.

I told him that he should give it some more time, but he actually dreaded going to practice, so I just let him quit.

He’s a smart kid who has other stuff going for him anyway, so why not.

But her husband wasn’t happy about this at all.

When he told his dad, he was pretty mad at me for letting him quit a few days in, saying that I was letting him be a loser and not helping him build resilience.

Idk though, so I’m posting here.

AITA?

Fourteen is more than old enough to decide for yourself which activities are worth your time.

What did Reddit think?

Is football a sport any parent should be letting their kid play?

This kid should feel free to get involved in other activities that he actually enjoys.

A year is more than enough time to tell if you like something.

The decision should be the kid’s, and not the parents’.

Letting him quit wasn’t about giving up — it was about listening to him when no one else would.

In the end, his well-being mattered more than a game.

If you liked this post, you might want to read this story about a teacher who taught the school’s administration a lesson after they made a sick kid take a final exam.