Woman accused of ‘brainwashing’ her sister’s children as she pleads case to remain childless

A Reddit user who was accused of “brainwashing” her sister’s children by explaining why she decided not to have children did nothing wrong, a family therapist told Fox News Digital.

“THE MOTHER WHO TELL MY SISTER’S CHILDREN THE TRUTH ABOUT WHY I NEVER HAD CHILDREN?” asked user “PutSpecial8915” in an Aug. 24 post to the “Am I the A–hole” subreddit.

In the post, the woman said she is 36 years old and has a younger sister with three children, aged seven, five and three.

“I am childless by choice, which has always been a point of contention in my family,” she wrote.

“My sister in particular has been very vocal about her belief that ‘a woman’s purpose is to be a mother’ and how I was ‘missing out on the best part of my life,'” she said.

In the past, the woman said she had ignored the comments “to keep the peace,” but recently, her sister’s oldest child apparently asked her again why she had chosen not to have children.

“I tried to give a vague and polite answer, but they persisted, saying their mother told them I would change my mind one day because ‘everyone does,'” PutSpecial8915 said.

“At this point, I decided it was time for the truth,” she said — and revealed to her sister’s children that she “valued[d] my freedom, my career and my personal time.”

“I explained that while some people want to be parents, others find happiness in different ways and that it’s okay not to have children if that’s what makes you happy,” she said.

“I also added that everyone’s life choices are valid as long as they are happy and fulfilled.”

However, this did not go down well with her sister – who overheard part of their conversation.

The sister “blasted me, accusing me of trying to ‘brainwash’ her children and undermine her parenting,” the woman wrote.

“She said I was being selfish to plant ‘doubt’ in her children’s minds about the importance of family. She even accused me of ‘enchanting’ a lifestyle that she feels is empty and meaningless,” the woman said in her post.

Later, PutSpecial8915’s parents called — and they sided with her sister’s anger over her conversation with her children, the woman shared in her post.

“They said I should just ‘humor’ the kids or avoid the question and that I owed my sister an apology for causing unnecessary drama,” she said.

However, “I don’t think I did anything wrong,” PutSpecial8915 said.

“I was honest, respectful and gave a balanced perspective. I’m tired of being made to feel like my choices are lesser or should be hidden just to avoid conflict.”

She added, “I believe it’s important for children to know that there are different paths in life and not all of them involve having children.”

The writer then asked others: “AITA to be honest with my niece and nephews about why I chose not to have children, even if it caused a family rift?”

Fox News Digital reached out to the Reddit writer for comment and update.

A therapist told Fox News Digital that she believed PutSpecial8915 did nothing wrong — as long as the situation unfolded as she described.

“She was asked a question and answered truthfully,” Rachel Goldberg, LMFT, founder of Rachel Goldberg Therapy in Los Angeles, told Fox News Digital via email.

Goldberg also said, “Just because her family didn’t like the answer doesn’t mean it was inappropriate.”

But, in the future, “she might consider giving a shorter answer like, ‘I’m not interested in children right now,’ to keep the peace,” she said.

“At the end of the day, she has every right to be honest,” Goldberg said.

“If her sister and the rest of the family don’t like it, they can choose not to ask that question or be around her.”

Reddit users largely agreed with Goldberg’s sentiment.

In more than 300 responses to her post, most said the woman was not an “a-hole” in the situation.

“NTA. Your sister has been damaging you to her children for years in a very passive-aggressive way. Because of that, this question would come up sometime,” another Reddit user wrote in the main answer.

The user said PutSpecial8915 chose not to be passive-aggressive in return and “came head-on.”

The same person wrote, “And your sister couldn’t stand it because she is afraid that if her children are exposed to other points of view, they will develop their own opinions.”

Another user pointed out that there was not much the woman could do in this situation.

“What a lie that was [she] is she supposed to show to preserve her sister’s beliefs?” asked user Ok-Cat-4975.