Date: April 27, 2025
Author: Zoe Matthews

My mom sees me as nothing more than a cleaner, not her daughter. I’m 18, a first-year college student, and yet she expects me to constantly clean the house. When I’m awake, it’s always “Hey, A, go clean this, this, and this.” If I mess up even the smallest thing, she starts yelling, telling me how girls my age are getting married, while I’m still living at home.

What really hurts is when I try to talk to her. I’ll try to make a conversation, but she just shuts me down, complaining about how tired she is and how much she’s cleaned. She says I do nothing, but that’s far from true. Whenever my dad doesn’t give her enough money for bills, I’m the one who steps in and helps out. When she needs help cleaning, I’m the one who does it. I try to be there for her, but it’s never enough.

Whenever I complain or express how hard things are for me, she tells me that God will punish me for it. She says it’s why I did so bad in my first semester of college. The weight of it all is crushing. I’m trying my best, but it feels like no matter how much I do, it’s never enough to earn her love or approval.