Mom walks out of 6-year-old's life to go ‘find herself’, 20 years later she actually finds herself without money, turns to daughter for help: ‘I told her flat-out no’

Author image for Bar Mor Hazut
Bar Mor Hazut • Senior Editor
Mar 8, 2025 4:00 PM EST

For some unknown reason we were led to believe that during our 20s we will all get the opportunity to 'find ourselves'. Being a young adult out in the world, with your whole life ahead of you, no real responsibilities and no single idea what you are going to do in life, is somehow the perfect recipe for finding oneself in all of that chaos. 

While I am not saying that no one 'finds themselves' when they're young, I do think it's safe to say that it's a lot easier said than done. What are you actually looking for, and how do you know you found it? Not all of us can go off and have an Eat, Pray, Love kind of experience, so how do we really make it happen?

Not to mention, while most of us start our 20s without responsibilities, we usually end them with a lot of those, which can often mean you're not as free to explore the world the way you expected.

The mother in the story below had no problems abandoning her daughter in her journey to 'find herself', but she might be regretting it now…

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  • When this mom walked out of her 6-year-old's life, she did not expect to be back 23 years later begging for help. She also, for some reason, did not expect her daughter to turn her away, even if it was exactly what she did herself. 

    Keep scrolling to read the full story. Then check out this story of an 18-year-old who cut contact with his biological parents.

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    Cheezburger Image 10476273152
    via Rido

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • 02

    "AITAH for telling my mom I won’t take care of her when she’s old after she abandoned me as a kid?"

    129f was raised by my dad after my mom walked out on us when I was six. She left to "find herself" and started a new family with another man.
    via l0veandhap1ness
  • 03
    She barely kept in touch. No birthdays, no holidays, not even a call when I graduated college. For most of my life, I accepted that she didn't want to be my mom and I moved
    via l0veandhap1ness
  • 04
    on. Fast forward to a few months ago, out of nowhere, she reached out. At first, I thought maybe she wanted to reconnect and apologize for the past, but no. She told
    via l0veandhap1ness
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    me she was struggling financially, her health wasn't. great and she needed someone to "step up" and take care of her. Apparently, her husband left and her
    via l0veandhap1ness
  • 06
    other kids "weren't in a position" to help. I told her flat-out no. I wasn't going to play caretaker for someone who abandoned me when I needed her. I reminded her
    via l0veandhap1ness
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    that she made her choice years ago and I don't owe her anything. She got mad and started crying, saying, "But I'm still your mother!
    via l0veandhap1ness
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    You can't just throw me away like I'm nothing!" I don't feel guilty. She made her bed and now she has to lie in it. But part of me wonders if I really
    via l0veandhap1ness
  • 09
    am being too harsh. AITAH for refusing to take care of the one who abandoned me even she is my mother and we share the same blad?
    via l0veandhap1ness
  • 10
    "I wasn't going to play caretaker for someone who abandoned me"
    via Charday Penn

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • 11
    dawgpoundma NTA you don't owe her anything. She made her bed time to sleep in it!
    via dawgpoundma
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    loveandhap1ness OP I was willing to forgive her but there was a darker picture behind why she wants to reconnect with me
    via l0veandhap1ness
  • 13
    Longjumping-Owl-3422 Why are you even talking to her if she abandoned you as a kid
    via Longjumping-Owl-3422
  • 14
    loveandhap1ness OP I really thought she would reconcile with me but it seems you just contacted me because she needed something
    via l0veandhap1ness
  • 15
    fiestafan73 "You abandoned your child. You are nothing." NTA
    via fiestafan73
  • 16
    IllustratorSlow1614 ΝΤΑ "You can't throw me away like I'm nothing" is deliciously hypocritical from someone who did precisely that to you.
    via IllustratorSlow1614
  • 17
    jemimahcutesy Bl d isn't thicker than abandonment. She made her choice when you were six. You're just returning the favor.
    via jemimahcutesy
  • 18
    Redd1tmadesignup NTA. "I need someone to step up" funny, that's what I needed as a child. "You can't throw me away like I'm nothing."... like you threw me away for a new family.
    via Redd1tmadesignup
  • 19
    Sorry, you must have me mistake. For someone else. My mother dd when I was 6, I only have a father.
    via Redd1tmadesignup
  • 20
    Hawaiianstylin808 She isn't your mother. She is some lady that pushed you out. She is a selfish woman. Ignore her NTA.
    via Hawaiianstylin808
  • 21
    TickityTickityBoom NTA send her a total of all the - help and assistance she contributed to you and your life for teenage years, college years and adult years, multiple this by ten and send her this amount ($0 x10 = 0)
    via TickityTickityBoom
  • 22
    JoselinLayola She abandoned you, not the other way around. Now she wants you to 'step up' when she never did? Sounds like she just sees you as a backup plan, not family.
    via JoselinLayola

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family drama aita kids mother abandoned reddit story parenting family daughter Reddit mom women karma parents children entitled people Father
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