A woman recently confronted her husband, telling him he is "expecting too much" from their son over the number of eggs he eats. Redditors were genuinely alarmed by the father's behavior after he insisted his son eat more eggs one Sunday even though his son didn't want more.
The Reddit post was shared on the subreddit "Am I The A**hole" on February 2 by u/throwawayegg132. It's titled, "AITA for telling my husband he is expecting too much from our son over the amount of eggs he eats?"
The woman, 38, said her 47-year-old husband is "a very traditional man" who was a star football player when he was younger. He's also very built, and the couple shares a 15-year-old son who "took after" his mom as "he isn't particularly brawny and doesn't have an eye for sports."
Around a year ago, their teenage son started picking up exercising as a hobby. The son and his mom started jogging together, and he was eating a bit healthier too. But lately, the woman's husband has been "a little harsh" on their son, expecting him to complete reps and eat a lot more protein. The wife went on to explain that the husband is "forcing" their son too much, and he has started to talk less with friends, plus he's "pushing himself more and more."
The original poster (OP) continued: "Last Sunday, I made all of us breakfast. I made two eggs for both my husband and son, but my husband insisted he had more, so I did two more eggs, he ate them [although barely] and my husband insisted I do more despite my son not wanting to this time."
Eggs are a good source of protein and have important vitamins and minerals. According to the Mayo Clinic, one egg has about 75 calories in it with "5 grams of fat, 6 grams of protein, 0 carbohydrates, 67 milligrams of potassium, 70 grams of sodium, and 210 milligrams of cholesterol." Most people who are healthy can consume up to seven eggs in a week without it affecting heart health.
The OP spoke with her husband, telling him "that he needs to stop, and he was expecting too much" from their son. But he had a different mindset. "He said that it was nonsense and as his kid, he expects him to be like how he was when he was younger," the Redditor revealed. "I called him ridiculous, and he told me that as the father of our kid, he should guide him and that I was 'interfering.'"
The OP said she and her husband haven't really spoken that much since the incident, and the Redditor was "afraid" she could be wrong in the situation because she "came in between their relationship." However, the now-viral post with over 8,100 upvotes has people siding with the OP in the situation, not the husband.
One Redditor's comment garnered over 18,000 upvotes on its own, likening the situation to a Disney movie. "NTA [not the a**hole]!" the user wrote. "Is your husband Gaston from Beauty and the Beast? 'Cause he sounds like Gaston from Beauty and the Beast."
Another compared the father to a character from King of the Hill. "He actually reminds me more of Hank Hill; Trying to relive his glory days by forcing his child to fit a narrow mold of acceptable behavior," the Redditor said.
One Redditor said it isn't about the eggs, but about forcing the teen "to do something he doesn't want nor need. By forcing him to eat more protein and exercise more than he is comfortable with, the only thing your husband is gonna accomplish is discouraging him."
A Redditor sided with the OP, saying the boy didn't want more eggs. "His father was trying to force him to eat more eggs," they said. "You stood up for your son. Honestly, no one should eat that many eggs in a day. That's not the point, but it's the truth."
A user thought the OP's husband is "creating a really toxic environment for the kid, and I don't mean just by force-feeding him food he doesn't want."
Yet another person voted the OP isn't the a**hole, stating: "Your husband is trying to relive his glory days with your son, and not taking into account that your son is an individual."
Some had theories on how the son will react in the long run. "Your son is going to resent the hell out of your husband for forcing him to do that," a Redditor wrote.
Newsweek reached out to u/throwawayegg132 for comment.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
