Pranks are a sensitive subject and a bit of a double-edged sword. If you enjoy them, they can add a bit of spice and levity to your life. However, if you hate them or your partner ignores all lines in the sand, things can get quite tense at home. It just goes to show how important it is to respect each other’s boundaries in any relationship.
One anonymous man went viral after turning to the popular AITAH online community for some impartial advice about an argument he had with his pregnant wife. According to the author, his spouse pulled a very nasty prank on him and then tried to make him feel guilty for falling for it. Scroll down for the full story, including the tips that various internet users gave the dad-to-be.
It's no surprise that not everyone's a fan of pranks. If they're too mean, it can end up damaging your relationship
Image credits: Helena Lopes / pexels (not the actual photo)
An anonymous man asked the internet for advice after calling out his pregnant wife for pulling a very emotional prank on him
Image credits: Salha Frija / unsplash (not the actual photo)
Image credits: Kaboompics.com / pexels (not the actual photo)
Image credits: Jeremy Perkins / pexels (not the actual photo)
Image credits: Ok-Swimming9365
Pranks can do a lot of harm if your audience doesn't like them. On the other hand, positive humor has a lot of upsides
According to Integrative Psych, the line between harmless fun and unintended consequences can be blurry when it comes to pranks. For one, you have to consider the person you’re pranking, what their sense of humor is, and what their current emotional state is like. If you know that they’re likely to be deeply upset after being pranked, you shouldn’t do it.
In a work environment, pranks can sometimes step over the boundaries of professionalism. And if you’re pranking your family members at home, you should keep in mind that young children might not be able to understand all the nuances of humor just yet. You might end up genuinely causing them emotional distress.
On the other hand, positive humor can be very beneficial to your relationship. Mitch Abblett, Ph.D., explains in an article on Psychology Today how mirthfulness (humor that lifts you) can reduce stress, improve communication with others, and strengthen your bonds with other people. In short, it can deepen your connections and improve relationship satisfaction.
“Mirthfulness is not about mocking yourself or others, nor is it about denying, minimizing, or suppressing pain. It’s about touching the truth of what’s happening in a moment,” Abblett writes. “Mirthfulness is the beginning of something good in your experience when circumstances are perhaps anything but.”
Respecting your partner means taking care not to overstep their boundaries if you're aware of them
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At its core, the main issues the anonymous husband touches on in his post revolve around the distrust between him and his wife, as well as the lack of empathy and respect for his boundaries. To be clear, it’s not that comedy is ‘bad’ here, just how it’s used in relation to what someone else is comfortable with.
On the one hand, humor, lightheartedness, and playfulness are what keep romantic relationships alive and passionate. It’s impossible to imagine a happy and healthy relationship without smiles, laughter, and some gentle teasing.
On the other hand, there are common sense limits to the type of comedy you can use. When you date a person for years, live with them, marry them, and have children with them, then you obviously know where (most of) their limits lie.
To put it a tad bluntly, it’s a bit mean to constantly step over those boundaries for your amusement. It’s not real comedy if you’re the only person laughing while the audience is upset.
You have to learn to be receptive to the type of comedy that your significant other enjoys
For example, if you know that your loved one enjoys humor in all its forms, you could get them tickets to stand-up shows, watch funny movies with them, tell spicier jokes, and even pull some (harmless) pranks from time to time.
However, if they prefer dad jokes, puns, and more lighthearted humor, and hate pranks, you wouldn’t start telling them edgy jokes or try to trick them.
At the time of writing, the anonymous husband’s story has 15k upvotes. Furthermore, as the post went viral on the AITAH subreddit, it garnered 4.7k comments (and counting). Unfortunately, the author of the viral story had his account suspended since opening up online, so we were unable to reach out to him for further comment.
Many internet users were very supportive of the dad-to-be. From their perspective, his wife went too far. There are simply some topics you don’t joke about… especially when you know that your partner hates pranks in the first place.
A few commenters even suggested some equally nasty ways for the man to prank his wife in revenge. However, it’s not really clear how healthy escalating the situation further would be.
What’s your take on the entire situation, dear Pandas? What would you do if you were in the husband’s shoes? What do you think the couple should do next to move past the tense situation? Do you enjoy pranking others and getting pranked or is this a huge red flag for you? We’d love to hear your personal thoughts on all of this, so scroll down to the comments to share them.
Most readers were on the husband's side in this case. Here's how they interpreted the situation
However, a minority of readers had a different perspective. Here's what they told the author
