There is no questioning that being a parent can bring an awful lot of challenges and a lot of unexpected curveballs your way.
Some are easier to overcome than others, but a few can be pretty heartbreaking and cause a lot of unhappiness.
When your own children express their resentment at your choices, that's when things can get pretty upsetting for the majority of parents.
The exact issue was discussed on Reddit earlier this year as a stay-at-home mum opened up on what her children's true feelings were towards her not going to work.
Advert
Taking to Reddit, in a post that has since been deleted, the anonymous mum penned: "I NEVER saw this one coming. My adult, grown kids (18-20) say they resent me for being a stay-at-home mum because now I can't help with their life financially.
"They say things like, 'You've never had a job or gone to school so you don't understand', and 'The least you can do is get a job now to help me', along with lots of other comments like, 'You should've worked all those years'."
The mum went on to explain how she sacrificed having a career and continuing her education at university to instead prioritise the 'safety and well-being' of her children.
Advert
"I thought it was best, and we made it by just fine financially," she added.
Her children are now adults and she has since felt a bit of criticism from them surrounding the perception of being a stay-at-home mum.
As a result, she said she now feels: "Damned if you do, damned if you don't. I wish my choices hadn't hurt them. That was the total opposite of what I thought I was doing.
"I hope one day they'll understand."
Advert
The post gained a lot of attention on the parenting subreddit, with many users feeling sorry for the mum following her children's reaction.
"Entitled is the keyword here. Your children’s comments sound extremely entitled! They also lack gratitude. Were they always this rotten?" one Reddit user wrote.
A second added: "Sounds like something my kid would say. Massive entitlement. Reality is harsh, unfortunately. While I don't wish pain on anyway, OP's kid is going through an adjustment to reality."
Advert
While a third remarked: "I don’t understand why they feel entitled or have the expectation that they should have financial support as an adult. That has nothing to do with whether you were a single or dual-income household at all."
Callum Jones