Mom Lets Her Shy Daughter Refuse Unwanted Hugs, But Relatives Accuse Her Of Raising A Rude Child With No Manners
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Children should be taught to have control over their own bodies.
In this story, a mother has a 7-year-old daughter who isn’t comfortable with physical contact.
She allows her to refuse unwanted hugs, even from family members.
But her aunt always insisted on hugs during family gatherings.
When the grandmother said the girl needed to learn politeness, she firmly stood her ground.
Check out the full details below.
AITA for not forcing my kid to hug relatives at family gatherings?
My daughter is 7. She’s always been shy.
She doesn’t like being touched by people she’s not super close to.
At family gatherings, my aunt always insists on hugs.
She’ll open her arms and say, “Come, give me a hug!”
My daughter usually hides behind me or says no.
This mother was firm in setting boundaries for her daughter.
Last weekend was my aunt’s birthday party.
She tried the same thing. My daughter said, “No, thank you.”
My aunt looked hurt.
My mom pulled me aside and said, “You need to teach her to be polite. It’s just a hug.”
I said, “I’m teaching her that her body is her own. She doesn’t have to hug anyone if she doesn’t want to.”
She thinks she’s not wrong in teaching her child to say no.
My mom said I was being too soft, and she’s going to grow up rude.
Now, the family is talking about how I’m raising my kid wrong.
I don’t think I’m wrong for letting her say no to physical contact.
But they’re making me feel like I’m ruining her. AITA?
I agree that OP isn’t to blame here.
Teaching children that they can refuse unwanted physical contact is an important lesson, not a sign of bad parenting.
The family can certainly value politeness, but they should also accept that a child should be able to refuse hugs they aren’t comfortable with.
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Let’s see how others reacted to this story.
She is her own person, says this one.
This user shares their personal thoughts.
This person can relate.
Here’s a valid point.
If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about a daughter who feels hoodwinked after finding out the sick father she’s been supporting has plenty of money of his own.
Finally, this one makes sense, too.
“No, thank you” should be a valid response.
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