A post to r/EstrangedAdultKids on Oct. 24, 2026, features a hand-drawn comic about being raised to obey. The poster titled it “My favorite parenting method: retconning (poorly done vent comic).”
The thread has gathered more than 4,200 upvotes and 137 comments at the time of publication.
In text beneath the comic, the poster wrote, “You can’t raise a child one way for over ten years and get mad when they act exactly how you raised them to be.” She added that she would be “much closer to what my parents wanted me to be” if they had not decided she should be “a blindly obedient child and a confident adult with lots of iniciative [sic].”
Her comic panels depict black stick figures on white backgrounds. The figures represent a child with pigtails, an older version of that figure and a frowning parent with curly hair. The comic deals with two scenarios from her childhood and teenage years: one involving a plant rule and the other a chore.
Comment
byu/CandyBeth from discussion
inTrollCoping
The plant scenario centers on a sign displaying the rule “Keep all plants horizontal.” In one panel, the child smiles while looking at potted plants lying on their sides beside the sign and says, “Mommy made a new rule, but that sounds stupid!” She says she would break the rule because it doesn't make sense to her.
In another panel, the child looks guilty while standing next to an upright potted plant as her mom speaks. The parent asks how the child dares to break the rule and question the parent's authority. She then says that authority is absolute and that she would hit the child until her hand hurts.
The same sign appears in three panels featuring an older version of the child. This time, she says, “That rule sounds stupid and unresonable [sic], but I can’t break it because it’s a mom’s rule.” She adds that she asked her mother three times to confirm the rule and that her mother said yes.
In another panel, the same parent asks why the daughter did not question a rule that was supposedly made for her to break, then asks, “Do you only follow orders?” The parent also says “Horizontaly [sic]” was slang for “Upwards” for three weeks in the ’70s in a town of 700 people.
In the next panel, the older teen is crying. The parent asks when the daughter will become the “good, useful, helpful daughter I raised you to be via retcon,” and says, “No one will ever love you if you continue to be bad!” The parent also tells the daughter not to cry, calls her names and threatens to beat her.
A second story centers on a broom and a small pile of dust. In one panel, the child raises both arms and says, “I am a kid that just wants to be helpful and useful!” She has spotted a chore that needs to be done.
In the next panel, the child frowns as the parent says chores can be done only on her mom’s orders. She then says she would hit the child until her hand hurts. The chore scenario continues with the child, now a teen, standing near the same broom and dust. The teen says, “I haven’t been ordered to do it, so I can’t do it.” The last panel shows the parent asking why the chore has not been done yet. She mocks the daughter for acting like a kid and calls her stupid.
One commenter describes how small, stern reactions to a child’s talkativeness can shape their personality into adulthood. They wrote, “Many parents are either unaware or don’t care about the lasting effects upbringing has on children.” In their view, “even a seemingly small thing like telling them to shut up a bit too harshly when they are being enthusiasticly [sic] chatty” can leave a child withdrawn as an adult. “Parents should not be indifferent to their child’s tears, they need to understand them.”
Another viewer describes parents who expected a harsh, isolating childhood to produce thriving adults. They wrote that their parents “neglected us, screamed at innocent questions and denied us the chance to build relationships outside of the home.” The viewer said the parents expected the children to be “fully functional, well rounded, mentally healthy, socially popular and able to build rich lives so that they could retire on our laurels.” “That didn’t happen,” they added. They said their father is “less than pleased.”
Comment
byu/CandyBeth from discussion
inTrollCoping
Another commenter describes a parent's reaction when they try to discuss what happened during their childhood. They wrote that attempts to “talk to my father about the trauma he inflicted on me when I was growing up and emotionally vulnerable” lead him to accuse them of holding a grudge. The father says they “chose to be traumatized.” They added, “He might have improved in some ways but he’s still the same guy.”
The Daily Dot was unable to independently verify the events described in the post. The details above reflect the poster’s account as shared on r/EstrangedAdultKids. The identities of the poster, the parent and the commenters have not been confirmed.
Anyone affected by child abuse can call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 800-422-4453.
