You don’t have to choose
Sometimes it can feel like you have to pick a favourite parent, or say bad things about one of them to make the other one happy. You don’t have to do that.
What if I say something that upsets a parent?
You’re allowed to say what you actually feel, even if it’s not what someone wants to hear. You don’t have to perform being angry at a parent, or perform loving them more, to keep the peace.
What can I actually say?
Something like: “I love you both and I don’t want to be in the middle of this.” You don’t need a bigger speech than that. It’s okay to say it more than once.
Things you could say has a few more examples.
If you need to talk to someone right now
Nummer gegen Kummer, for children and young people: 116 111. It’s free, and they won’t tell your parents you called unless you want them to.
We can’t promise that everything you tell an adult stays secret — sometimes an adult needs to tell someone else to keep you safe. That’s true here too.
Worried someone might see you’ve been here? Cover your tracks.