I've just had a phone call from my mum. They know I'm gay, and they think I've been having very inappropriate private conversations on FB. They're very disappointed in me. I'm furious.
I move away to uni, so I spend half my year at home with my parents and the other half away studying. When I returned after the summer break, I was speaking to my mum on the phone when she mentioned that I'd accidentally left myself logged in to Facebook on their Ipad. I told them how they could log out for me, but they asked to stay logged in. I was immediately concerned and told them that obviously, I have some private things on facebook. She told me that they understood, and that they only wanted to stay logged in so that they could see my photos (i.e. of me on nights out, or at formal dinners etc.). My parents and I have a great relationship, so I said it was fine, so long as they ONLY looked at my pictures, and nothing else. They promised that this would be the case. Friends told me that they would never allow their parents to do this, but I kept reassuring them that I trusted them completely. Unfortuantely, my trust seems to have been misplaced.
When I returned for Christmas, my dad mentioned that one of my FB acquaintances was into salsa dancing. I should note that I barely know this girl. I immediately questioned how he knew this, and he said that he'd like to go on my FB and look down the timeline to see my friends, and see what they were up to. I told him that this was crossing a line, and I wasn't comfortable with him doing this. He promised he would stop, but then I noticed him doing it again at home. I confronted him, and essentially told him that he had lost the right to view my FB, and I logged out.
I've recently returned to uni. I still haven't come out to my parents, though I'm now out to everyone else. It's always been something I've struggled with, but I've made great progress, especially in the last 6 months. I was planning on telling my parents in the next holiday.
However, this morning, I received a call from my mum, saying that my dad had logged back into my facebook (I have no idea how he found out the password, I never told anyone this), and that he had been reading my private messages. I instantly knew what this meant. Apparently, I've been having some very inappropriate conversations (which I haven't, nothing big that I wouldn't tell them if they knew I was gay and nothing dirty), and they're very disappointed in me. I'm shocked and angry. I've never been this angry. I feel so violated and stupid that I trusted them. I don't even really care that they know (which is surprising). Any sadness of them knowing is dwarfed by rage.
How on earth do I handle this situation from here?
I move away to uni, so I spend half my year at home with my parents and the other half away studying. When I returned after the summer break, I was speaking to my mum on the phone when she mentioned that I'd accidentally left myself logged in to Facebook on their Ipad. I told them how they could log out for me, but they asked to stay logged in. I was immediately concerned and told them that obviously, I have some private things on facebook. She told me that they understood, and that they only wanted to stay logged in so that they could see my photos (i.e. of me on nights out, or at formal dinners etc.). My parents and I have a great relationship, so I said it was fine, so long as they ONLY looked at my pictures, and nothing else. They promised that this would be the case. Friends told me that they would never allow their parents to do this, but I kept reassuring them that I trusted them completely. Unfortuantely, my trust seems to have been misplaced.
When I returned for Christmas, my dad mentioned that one of my FB acquaintances was into salsa dancing. I should note that I barely know this girl. I immediately questioned how he knew this, and he said that he'd like to go on my FB and look down the timeline to see my friends, and see what they were up to. I told him that this was crossing a line, and I wasn't comfortable with him doing this. He promised he would stop, but then I noticed him doing it again at home. I confronted him, and essentially told him that he had lost the right to view my FB, and I logged out.
I've recently returned to uni. I still haven't come out to my parents, though I'm now out to everyone else. It's always been something I've struggled with, but I've made great progress, especially in the last 6 months. I was planning on telling my parents in the next holiday.
However, this morning, I received a call from my mum, saying that my dad had logged back into my facebook (I have no idea how he found out the password, I never told anyone this), and that he had been reading my private messages. I instantly knew what this meant. Apparently, I've been having some very inappropriate conversations (which I haven't, nothing big that I wouldn't tell them if they knew I was gay and nothing dirty), and they're very disappointed in me. I'm shocked and angry. I've never been this angry. I feel so violated and stupid that I trusted them. I don't even really care that they know (which is surprising). Any sadness of them knowing is dwarfed by rage.
How on earth do I handle this situation from here?
