A TikTok video from creator @_heywhatsupyall, which had drawn more than 780,000 views and over 8,300 comments at the time of writing, lists a series of household rules she said her parents enforced throughout her childhood and adolescence.
The video begins with her filming while grounded and noting that several of the rules remain in place.
She recalled that she did not get a phone until eighth grade and was required to leave it in her parents' room overnight until partway through her junior year of high school. Her parents initially checked the phone nightly before reducing that to once every few days.
The TikToker was required to answer her parents' calls on the first ring or risk losing her phone entirely. She was also not permitted to use it before school or bring it into her bedroom or bathroom. Her parents also installed an app that allowed them to hide or delete apps from her phone without her permission.
@_heywhatsupyall we love strict parents #mom #dad #strictparents #rules #foryoupage #hopefullyrelatable
♬ original sound - _heywhatsupyall
She was also not allowed to have TikTok or Snapchat and still does not have TikTok as of the recording of the video. The girl was first permitted to create an Instagram account the summer before her sophomore year of high school, which was the only social media platform she was allowed to use at the time.
Sleepovers were not allowed until she was nearly a teenager and, even then, were limited to friends her parents had known for years. Hanging out with friends was restricted to one day per weekend, with the other day reserved for family time or chores such as watering plants for hours or deep-cleaning the house.
She was not permitted to talk to or text boys, describing an incident in middle school where she got in trouble for texting a boy she said was just a friend. She had to get her parents’ approval days in advance to make plans with friends.
According to the TikToker, when her parents discovered she had a Snapchat account containing messages with boys, they took her to the desert and questioned her there for two days, which she described as the most traumatic experience of her life. She lost access to her phone for eight months afterward and was unable to communicate with friends during that time.
Later, her parents required her to write multi-page apology letters and personal improvement plans after she broke rules, and she said they remain hesitant to let her stay overnight at friends' houses even now, preferring that friends stay at her home instead.
Viewers Questioned the Story While Others Shared Their Strict Upbringings
Some commenters expressed skepticism, while others shared their own experiences with strict households. One commenter suggested the video was intended as a joke. They wrote, "Guys its a joke she literally says she still doenst have tiktok" [sic].
Another commenter compared the situation to their own household rules growing up. They wrote, "grounded w a phone??? my parents would've taken EVERYTHING."
Another commenter suggested a follow-up video covering the opposite topic. They wrote, "You should do a 'things my parents let me do' version."
The Daily Dot was unable to independently verify the claims described in this video, including the alleged two-day trip to the desert. The identities of the creator's parents have not been disclosed and are not identified in this article.
