How someone approaches disciplining their child for misbehaving says a lot about who they are as a parent and a person. Some parents are strict and have a no-nonsense approach to stepping out of line. Others might embrace the ‘gentle parenting’ philosophy and primarily lead with empathy and kindness. But then there are the outliers who confuse and even amuse the internet with their ideas.
Taking away a child’s books, forcing them to go to a home and remodeling convention, and making them write a letter to a soap company is barely scratching the surface. We’ve compiled a list of some of the most peculiar and creative punishments that kids have ever gotten from their parents, as shared by the people in these three r/AskReddit threads here, here, and here. Scroll down to read about the most bizarre of the bunch.
When you’ve finished this article, you can find Bored Panda’s earlier feature about peculiar parent punishments right here.
#1
I threw really horrible temper tantrums as a child. I was 8-9 years old throwing tantrums like a toddler would. My mom decided that “if you’re going to act like you’re 2, I’m going to treat you like you’re two.”
She took away any toys/games that weren’t rated for ages 2 & under, she swapped out my bed for a crib (I was tiny so I fit), I wasn’t allowed to cross the street to my grandparents without someone holding my hand, I wasn’t allowed to watch PG movies, only G rated movies. My bedtime was 7:30pm.
It f****n worked. I stopped throwing tantrums real quick.
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259points
#2
After they discovered that I hadn't done homework in a month, they took me to a home & remodeling convention with them. They spent hours looking at aluminum siding and various granite counter tops.
Strange? Yes. Did it work? Also yes. It was f*****g awful.
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191points
#3
I think I've shared this in comments before, but my parents made me write letters as punishment. For example: my mom caught me lying about showering (I would go into the bathroom, turn the shower on while I stood outside it, then wrap myself in a towel and pretend I was clean) and my punishment was to choose a soap company and write a letter to their customer service department about why showering is important. I would love to know what the person who got that letter thought.
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187points
Most of you Pandas will agree that at least some boundaries and rules are needed when raising kids; the question is—to what extent? Your point of view will depend on your particular family situation, how you were raised, and what you’ve found to work best in your experience.
According to the research done by developmental psychologist Diana Baumrind and Stanford researchers Eleanor Maccoby and John Martin, there are four main parenting styles. These are: permissive, authoritative, neglectful, and authoritarian. These approaches vary by how much (or how little) parents respond to their children’s needs, and how demanding they are. They all have their upsides and downsides, with the authoritative approach being the most balanced out of the four.
#4
In highschool, I got caught drunk at a friends house. They caught me in a lie and eventually tracked down the party, and I was found passed out beneath a trampoline with a beer in each fist. I had to crawl from the car to my bed, I don't even remember it happening. My mom later said she had to walk away because she was laughing so hard, because I kept falling asleep on the stairs.
The next day we had a family function. My punishment? They told my 6 incredibly Irish uncles and my incredibly Irish grandfather all about how hung over I was. I was basically left in the wolves den with raw meat tied all around me. They tossed me around, made me fetch them things, smacked me on the back, shoved my face, poked my stomach, rubbed my hair, noogies, flicked my ears, poked my temples, forced me to drink another beer (made me puke just smelling it), made me dance, stuck my head down by the speakers playing loud music... all in all I threw up three times and didn't drink for the next 4 years.
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186points
#5
When I was in maybe second or third grade, I kept oversleeping and missing the bus and my mom had to drive me to school, which she understandably was getting a bit exasperated over. She told me that if I missed the bus again, I would have to walk to school. I didn't really believe it, but the next morning I missed the bus again and she told me to start walking. My school was several miles away, and not a safe, walkable trek for a kid, so she slooooowly followed along behind me in her car, pulling over whenever another car came up behind her to let them pass. A few minutes down the road, my neighbor saw me and asked what I was doing, and I told him I'd missed the bus and had to walk to school. He offered to give me a ride, and then my mom rolled past at like 0.25 mph, rolled down her window and called out, "no, she's walking!" He looked pretty puzzled, but left us to it.
She didn't actually make me walk the whole way--she picked me up after about 15 minutes, before we hit a major route that would have made the walk unsafe--but it absolutely had its intended effect. I was so unsettled and embarrassed by the whole thing, I (almost) never missed the bus again.
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155points
#6
i used to accidentally lose the remote for the tv (it's now solved by securing the remote to the table with a cord). The punishment was not just to confiscate my ps3, but instead he hid the controller without telling me so i knew how frustrating it was when your s**t goes missing. I guess it makes sense but it felt super weird when you're just used to normal punishments.
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133points
For example, a permissive parent is someone who is incredibly responsive to what their child needs, but barely has any demands. So even though they communicate very openly with their kid, they almost always let them decide what to do themselves. These parents usually don’t set expectations, don’t enforce rules, avoid conflict, and don’t provide much guidance.
Contrast that with a neglectful parent who is mostly indifferent to their child’s needs. Usually, this type of parent struggles with self-esteem issues and has trouble forming close relationships with other people. Generally, they are uncaring and unbothered, though not always on purpose.
#7
When I was a senior in high school, I did something stupid (don't remember) so my parents took my car away for a week. I responded with "good, the heater in my car doesn't work" (it was December). My dad went on to drive me and my innocent freshman brother to school in his truck with the windows down for the rest of the week.
Edit: Because this is getting so popular, I feel I need to come clean. This did not actually happen to me... I am the innocent little brother.
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121points
#8
I was bullied by two kids throwing rocks at me. One hit me in the mouth and knocked a baby tooth out.
I took my belt off and hit them in the face and chased them off.
Their parents came to my house and said I attacked their son. Despite my missing tooth they sided with the bullies parents. They spanked me in front of them and didn't allow
me to wear a belt for a week. I also wasn't allowed to talk because I "lied".
me to wear a belt for a week. I also wasn't allowed to talk because I "lied".
I was bullied for years as a result, and it was always my fault for "wanting attention".
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116points
#9
I was given the silent treatment for cleaning out the fridge without being asked. My parents grew up poor so I think a full fridge was reassuring even if it was full of gross leftovers and condiments. Still it was a pretty immature way of communicating that to me
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108points
Some people embrace authoritarian, aka ‘tough love,’ parenting. Stereotypically, they enforce very strict rules, throw their authority around, and enjoy control. They are incredibly demanding, but aren’t very responsive, meaning that communication is often only one-way. They aren’t much concerned with their children’s feelings. As such, their punishments may be considered to be too stern or even harsh by many.
Meanwhile, authoritative parenting is a healthy blend of permissive and authoritarian parenting. Authoritative parents are incredibly responsive and demanding of their kids. They set clear rules and expectations while also being as flexible and understanding as they can. They value communication. They consider their munchkins’ opinions while also guiding, nurturing, and supporting them.
#10
My mom wouldn't let me eat for more than a day so the only food I got between dinner one night and dinner two nights later was the chinsy school lunch. My crime? My brother was torturing me and made me eat s**t out of the trash and left a mess. She came home from work and was pissed there was a mess so she said we weren't allowed to eat anymore of her food until we learned respect. My brother left that night. 2 days later my uncle came to check on me cause my brother usually watched me and he had left. He asked if I had dinner and I told no and why.....that punishment ended quickly.
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104points
#11
Took away the power cord to my PlayStation leaving behind literally everything else. To taunt me I guess? Jokes on them Sony power cords were universal—thank you boom box power cord.
100points
#12
My mother, sick of the fact that sending me to any sort of timeout/grounding where I was alone resulted in nothing (I'd either find a toy, magazine, or nap), one day came to the realization that "Go outside" was an option.
I was repeatedly grounded by being sent outside to play with my best friends instead of playing alone.
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99points
The authoritative parent tends to view punishment through the lens of natural consequences, by allowing things to take their course. Some examples of this can include failing a test if you don’t study for it or not having any dessert if you throw a tantrum and toss out your ice-cream cone. They help their kids reflect on what happened and learn from their mistakes, meaning that they grow up more disciplined and independent than others their age.
#13
I didn't like to eat in the mornings when I was young (8-9 years old) because I had a nervous stomach before school (reasons).
My dad was going into work late and insisted I eat the apple jacks cereal in front of me, he was getting very angry saying things like, "you waste food - you gotta grow up and quit being nervous" because that super helped.
I told him that the apple jacks tasted funny. It really tasted weird and then I saw the small white things floating in the milk and suggested the milk was sour. Obviously he called b******t - got so mad at my 'lie' that he made me eat all of it and drink the milk.
Then I went to school and threw it up and got to go home! Take that Dad!
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98points
#14
Growing up I had a set of children's science encyclopedias. My Mom would pull one at random off the shelf and make me read it cover to cover (they were roughly 100 pages each). Once I said I was done, she would turn to random pages and quiz me. If I got more than 2 wrong, I had to go read it again. I guess that's why I have a ton of useless information in my head.
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92points
#15
I used to stay up all night reading when I was a kid, to the point where I’d fall asleep in class the next day because I hadn’t had more than a short nap.
My parents tried enforcing a lights out time. They tried taking my books away from me. I always found a way to sneak it back, or to sneak a light source. Sometimes I’d just get a different book.
Eventually my father made a wooden box. It was big enough to hold any book in the house, and it contained the loudest alarm I have ever heard. At bedtime, my book would be taken away and placed in the box. The box would be placed on my windowsill. And as soon as the lid was opened the alarm would go off and wake up not only my family, but also our neighbours, and one time even the people across the street, who happened to have their windows open at the wrong time.
I started sleeping properly after that.
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86points
#16
My mum confiscated my IEC cable so I couldn't use my computer. 4 days later she found a mouse in her shoe and I negotiated an early release of the cable in exchange for a rudimentary pest control service.
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86points
#17
Not me but my sister had a situation where the entire bathroom started smelling like pee. She cannot figure this out so the next couple weeks she smelled and looked for the cause of this. Well she eventually found out that her two sons six years old and seven years old would stand in the bathroom tub and pee from the tub into the toilet and of course pee got everywhere. Once she found this out the punishment for the two boys was they having to sit down every time they had to pee. She would occasionally follow them to the bathroom and listen and if she heard what sounded like people standing she would add another month on to the punishment.
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83points
#18
I was having a literal fistfight with an older cousin (he was a prick. Still is, actually).
My papaw grabbed us both by the shirts, dragged us out the back door and said we couldnt come back in the house until one of us was no longer standing. Seriously encouraging an 11 year old girl and 15 year old boy to beat each other shitless.
So we beat each other shitless.
He finally just laid down on the ground because we got thirsty and tired. We got to cone back inside.
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82points
#19
I started working on my homework late, so my mom made me stay up all night "since i didn't care about sleep". I was a sophomore in highschool....
I said something along the lines of "studying an hour earlier would really help my future, clearly worked for you since you're so successful as a part time librarian who thinks vaccines cause autism and no real friends". She cried but wouldn't budge on the whole no sleep thing. My dad woke up and just said "be nice to your mom" and "let him sleep that's just insane".
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79points
#20
I said I hated one of the girls in school. 'Hate' was a bad word. I had to invite her over and be nice and get to know her. She was a b***h at age 7 and she's still a b***h at 31. It wouldn't seem too weird since they were trying to teach me that people have value or some s**t like that (idk, I don't have kids), except that recently the girl was mentioned in conversation and my mom ranted about what a little s**t she was as a kid and how she was an example of a girl that needed to be slapped for the nasty things she said. What the f*****g f**k Mom?
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78points