A mom who calls herself "throwawaysonsdoor" is asking if she is wrong for removing the door to her 16-year-old son's bedroom indefinitely after he refused to open it for her. She jumps right into explaining the situation and asks Reddit users, "AITA?" Her story begins as follows:

"Yesterday while I was making lunch I heard a really loud sound, as if the ceiling was falling or a bookshelf had fallen.

My husband (41M) and daughter (17F) were out, the only other person in the house was my son (16M). I was pretty sure he was in his room, which is at the opposite side of the house from the kitchen, so while making my way there I checked every room, and everything seemed in order.

I knocked on my son's door and called his name, no answer. I must have knocked/called 3 times before trying to open the door which was locked."

The mom explained that by this point, she was "getting really freaked out," because she did not know if a bookshelf or other piece of furniture had fallen on her son. She pictured him trapped and unconscious, unable to respond to her frantic cries. "I was basically screaming his name, no answer," she explains.

At this point, the mom's fear and adrenaline kicked in, and she threw herself against the door to her son's bedroom. The door broke, and her son was sitting there, perfectly fine, watching television and ignoring her demands to open the door.

When asked why he didn't answer her calls or open the door, the teenager snarked at her that he didn't want her to interrupt his movie. "You were screaming like a harpy, and it was annoying, I was trying to watch the movie. Fix the door," he demanded.

Instead of giving in to his demand, she informed her son that she would not be fixing his door but would rather have his dad "remove the door entirely." In typical teenage fashion, the son insisted that it is his "right" to have a door in his room and that he "deserves" his privacy.

Mom, however, felt differently and explained to him that the door being broken was a consequence of his actions and that if he wanted another door, he would have to raise the money to get one. Until then, he would have no door and could have the privacy to change, etc., in the bathroom.

The boy answered his mom with an expletive, "f you." She grounded him.

Now, the mother is second-guessing herself. While her husband supports her decision, she feels that maybe she was too harsh. She has taken to Reddit to ask users, "AITA?"

For the most part, Redditors agree with the mom's decision but now feel that she should replace the door with one that does not lock and instead remove the boy's television. As one user explains, "This is exactly the right advice. Both of these punishments relate to his behavior being natural consequences.

I totally get how at first glance leaving the door removed seems like a similar punishment, but he is right, having a place he can close off is important. More important than the punishment.

Make sure everyone always knocks, and he won't need the lock. The lock is not even really a punishment. He clearly isn't at a stage in life (where) he understands why locks are dangerous, so he doesn't get one till he is old and wise enough.

The tv removal is the appropriate punishment for him refusing to open the door for his parents and disrespecting you + being overtly loud."

Another user responded, "Locks are dangerous" -- he's not 8, he's 16. Locks are not really dangerous. 2 years from now he could be living alone, he'll probably keep his door locked. Normal people accept some very small risks like this all the time," to which others hit back with:

"Normal kids answer the door when their mother is banging on it. This kid's lack of respect is what concerns me," and "The way he expressed himself to his mother made me see red. That would have been disrespectful even if he was her (expletive) boss, which he's NOT."

Many users agree that even their grown children would not speak to them as this teenager did his mom. But does that justify her leaving him with no door in his room until he can pay for one himself? Do you feel that her punishment was too much? Or perhaps not enough? Should she take the television also? Let us know your thoughts!

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