11 Children of Karens who recounted their most publicily humiliating experiences with them: 'The store closed at 10. We were there until 2 AM'

Author image for Ally Perry
Ally Perry • Writer and Editor
Oct 26, 2026 3:15 PM EDT

Is it really so hard to commit to learning the most basic emotional regulation skills? 

Although all of us have suffered the presence of a Karen at some point, not everybody is so unlucky as to have grown up with one. Witnessing a Karen on the rampage in the wild, cutting an underpaid service employee down to size, or even being the unlucky worker on the receiving end of that behavior is not in the same league as having a mom or dad with Karen tendencies. That is nearly 24 hours a day of exposure to somebody liable to go on an unstoppable rant at any minute.

Miserable as it is to think about it, a big proportion of those unreasonable people who haunt hospitality and retail establishments will have kids, and those kids are likely to be in a front-row seat to witness all of their crazy behavior. If all the stories we hear of dysfunctional families are anything to go by, being related to a Karen is a common affliction. 

If you get easily angered by small annoyances, you might think that it would be better to think twice about whether reproducing is the right decision for you. The stress of having kids may only increase the chances of an embarrassing outburst of Karen behavior in public. Every child has had those moments with parents where they wish that the ground would just swallow them, but with these kinds of moms and dads, this kind of situation is likely to happen with a lot more frequency.


 

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  • 01
    An angry older woman waves her hand at the barista behind the counter who is talking to her in a coffee shop.
    via Getty Images (Unsplash+)

    An angry older woman waves her hand at the barista behind the counter who is talking to her in a coffee shop. Scene is illustrative and does not depict actual individuals or events.

  • 02
    Children of "Karens", what's the most humiliating experience they caused you growing up?
    via Quietledder

  • There is no doubt about it: living with a Karen parent is a sure-fire way to live life on hard mode. It is something that is extra hard to swallow, as it is not like this is a choice that the children made. It was just the luck of the draw.

    A group of people who had felt victimized by dealing with a Karen mom or dad shared their worst experience with them when they were growing up. Many of these examples would cause enough secondhand embarrassment if you were just a mere witness, let alone if you were parented by the person who was causing the disruption. All of these kids definitely have plenty to unpack in therapy, and arguably, their parents could do with some of that too.

  • 03

    Double the Karen is double the pain.

    Julia WeGotCows Both of my parents can be Karens, especially if they have to wait for something. I was at the bank with my mum waiting to see a teller. We waited in line for maybe 10 minutes before my mother started heavy sighing as loud as she could. I pointed out that we hadn't even
    via JuliaWeGotCows
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    been waiting that long and she angrily said that it had been at least 45 minutes. I showed her proof that no it had not been, and she just started tapping her foot. over and over.
    via JuliaWeGotCows
  • 05
    At Costco with my dad in line for self-checkout. He got so angry that the other line was moving faster that he literally started shouting about people being idiots and not knowing how to scan groceries. A dude in the other line let us go ahead of him.
    via JuliaWeGotCows
  • 06

    Everybody loves a confrontational diner.

    CaptainAbaddon My dad was the king of confrontation, especially in restaurants. He would send food back regularly, complain to staff about wait times, ask to change tables, ask for the manager and so on. Right or wrong, it was so humiliating for me and my sisters.
    via CaptainAbaddon
  • 07
    One time, we were the last people in the restaurant and a staff member started vacuuming because it was closing time. My dad complained and the manager told him to h ll
    via CaptainAbaddon
  • 08

    Sometimes the service worker is abandoned in favor of a new target.

    caerleon_calls_ She was being ride to a service worker at a theme park we were at, and after he left, I called her out on it because it made me feel gross and uncomfortable. I basically said "Why do you do that, none of this would be possible without people like him". She proceeded to scream at me in the middle of public and brought
    via carleon_calls_
  • 09
    up all my insecurities, including calling me lazy and pathetic for quoting the competitive swim team I had been on (I quit because I became dis ed. Would have done anything to not have to quit and she knew that.). Strangers were staring at us and it was the smallest and angriest I've ever felt.
    via carleon_calls_
  • 10

    She didn't want anyone else to be treated.

    MrBig Tomato I had just gotten my first paycheck from a new job, so I took my mom and sister to Sizzler for the buffet. When we got up to leave, I put five bucks on the table as a tip to the nice girl who brought us drinks and refills. As we walked away, the girl came back, thanked
    via MrBigTomato
  • 11
    us for coming, and started cleaning the table. Before she could pick up her tip, my mom snatched it away and yelled at me for tipping her. "What's wrong with you?? She didn't do anything! We got our own food! Do you think she's wants you?" | was 16.
    via MrBigTomato
  • 12

    Kids are going to learn by example.

    Michelle957285749 I think what's most humiliating is remembering that as a child I imitated my dad's poor behavior. I grew up watching him berate people and act like an a hole to staff everywhere. I cringe so much thinking about how horribly ride I was to random service workers,
    via Michelle957285749
  • 13

    This was a real standoff.

    FeebleGweeb When I was maybe 11/12, my mom brought me to a store at like 9:30pm. The store closed at 10. We were there until 2am, when my mom started a shouting match with the only employee in the store over being told we needed to leave and then insisted that the employee ring in her two full shopping carts of bulls none of us needed.
    via FeebleGweeb
  • 14
    She did this again at a different store like a month later, but we were there until 3am (this time with my younger siblings who were like 5/6) and the store called the police when she started threatening them for telling her we needed to leave and trying to
    via FeebleGweeb
  • 15
    get them to reopen a register to ring up, again, multiple carts of bulls we didn't need, forcing my grandparents to drive almost 20 miles in the middle of the night to come pick us up while the cops dealt with our mom.
    via FeebleGweeb
  • 16

    Some Karens turn to petty crime.

    AdorableDemand46 My mom was a thief. She would lie to fast food workers that she talked to a manager and was supposed to get a free meal. She did it often enough she would learn the actual fr king manager names to make it more convincing. She would throw absolute fits if she was denied. And yes, the lady was as wide as she was tall.
    via AdorableDemand46
  • 17

    If in doubt, make it personal.

    jjtown225 My mother was complaining to the manager about a discount that wasn't properly applied to her large black Friday purchase. He had a lazy eye. After going back and forth for a while and voices raising she said, "well which
    via jjtown225
  • 18
    eye should I look at." Or something like that. She made fun of his eyes. It was such a low blow and made me feel awful.
    via jjtown225
  • 19

    Experience doesn't necessarily make someone more understanding.

    daisyd00ds My father is a Karen... who has been working in restaurants since he was 15 years old. He's worked every position possible YET he is the absolute worst to waitstaff. I remember being at a nice steakhouse with him and he was purposely asking very intense questions just to humiliate our
    via daisyd00ds
  • 20
    server. We were a party of 20 and our server was amazing at keeping track of everything, but my dad just HAD to be a .I always leave an extra tip, I call him out publicly in front of the server so they know we knows he's insane and out of line. It's so embarrassing.
    via daisyd00ds
  • 21

    A lot of Karen parents want to speak for you.

    Javascript4971 Back when I was still waitressing full time in my 20s, I had taken on a delivery job for one shift (the restaurant I worked at only delivers within a 3 mile radius), I told my mom when I got home. She, no kidding, said she was going to march right up to my job to confront my boss for "allowing
    via Javascript4971
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    me to take on a dangerous job like that". We had a huge screaming match about it. She said if I won't listen to her then I can pack up & move out. Some time later on, she was shocked when I made the announcement that my then boyfriend (now fiancé) invited me to move in with him
    via Javascript4971
  • 23

    He had to give a thorough inspection.

    TALieutenant Mine aren't, but a friend's dad is. They went to a restaurant once and were told that they'd have to wait for a table. He walked right past the host and around the entire restaurant to make sure they weren't lying to him. My friend and her mom were MORTIFIED!
    via TALieutenant

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customer service kids parenting karens in the wild
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