Controlling Parents Quotes & Sayings

Controlling parents often want to be involved in every aspect of their children’s lives, from what they eat and wear to who they date and what kind of career they have. They can also exhibit control in a lot of subtle ways too, like a disapproving look, a judgemental comment, sulking like a child and withholding affection if things don’t go their way.

The levels of control and abuse can of course vary greatly and it’s important to seek help if needed. 

While most controlling parents simply want what’s best for their children, their actions can often do more harm than good.

Related: Quotes About Selfish Parents – For Awareness & Healing

Controlling parents can have a negative effect on their children in a number of ways, including making them feel suffocated and unable to make their own decisions. This can lead to low self-esteem and a lack of confidence.

In addition, controlling parents can inadvertently teach their children that it’s okay to control and manipulate others, which can lead to unhealthy relationships later in life.

The following collection of quotes can help with awareness if you or someone you know is dealing with a controlling parent:

 

Controlling Parents Quotes

 

“The most loving parents and relatives commit murder with smiles on their faces. They force us to destroy the person we really are – a subtle kind of murder.” Jim Morrison

 

 

“I had very strict parents. My two brothers were power and freedom. I was powerlessness and seclusion.” Monica Vitti

 

 

“People tend to raise the child inside of them rather than the child in front of them.” Joe Newman

 

 

“A bird cannot love freely when caged.” Matshona Dhliwayo

 

 

“A lot of parents will do anything for their kids except let them be themselves.” Banksy

 

 

“People tell you the world looks a certain way. Parents tell you how to think. Schools tell you how to think. TV. Religion. And then at a certain point, if you’re lucky, you realize you can make up your own mind. Nobody sets the rules but you. You can design your own life.” Carrie-Anne Moss

 

 

“A slavish bondage to parents cramps every faculty of the mind.” Mary Shelley

 

 

“Control leaves no room for trust.” Glennon Doyle

 

 

“If parents want “success stories” to share at gatherings they should provide themselves with those, and they should not use their children for that purpose.” Lukasz Laniecki

 

 

“Too bad for any parent who has become accustomed to ruling by force, because at some point the kids just get too big to slap around.” Barbara Ehrenreich

 

 

“Young people all over the world are very frustrated. They are very disillusioned. Many of them are turning their backs on religion. They are walking away from the faith of their parents, and most of this is because religion has failed them.” Myles Munroe

 

 

“Leave your pride, ego, and narcissism somewhere else. Reactions from those parts of you will reinforce your children’s most primitive fears.” Henry Cloud

 

 

“Follow your own passion – not your parents’, not your teachers’ – yours.” Robert Ballard

 

 

“Children are not born for the benefit of their parents, neither are they the property of their family. Children belong to the future.” Anthon St. Maarten

 

 

“Parents wonder why the streams are bitter, when they themselves have poisoned the fountain.” John Locke

 

 

“Every word, facial expression, gesture, or action on the part of a parent gives the child some message about self-worth. It is sad that so many parents don’t realize what messages they are sending.” Virginia Satir

 

 

“To all you parents out there, don’t make your little girls, or little boys, so thirsty for love that they will want to drink water that will poison them.” Lisa Bedrick

 

 

“We are all entitled to our own share of mistakes and learning experiences in life. No one should take them away from us. Not even our parents.” Lukasz Laniecki

 

 

“Children begin by loving their parents; after a time, they judge them; rarely, if ever, do they forgive them.” Oscar Wilde

 

 

“I learned the way a monkey learns – by watching its parents.” Prince Charles

 

 

“Your job is not just to do what your parents say, what your teachers say, what society says, but to figure out what your heart calling is and to be led by that.” Oprah Winfrey

 

 

“I believe that one defines oneself by reinvention. To not be like your parents. To not be like your friends. To be yourself. To cut yourself out of stone.” Henry Rollins

 

 

“It has been my observation that parents kill more dreams than anybody.” Spike Lee

 

 

“The ultimate tragedy is not the oppression and cruelty by the bad people but the silence over that by the good people.” Martin Luther King, Jr.

 

 

Quotes About Manipulative Parents      

 

“Narcissists are very retaliative if they believe another has achieved what they desire, exposed their insecurities, or refused to be under their control.” Lorraine Nilon

 

 

“The ones that love us least, are the ones we’ll die to please.” Paul Westerberg

 

 

“If mental abuse was a punishable crime, a lot of parents would be in jail serving a long term.” Maddy Malhotra

 

 

“Family is where you’re meant to be most free, don’t let blood chain you down.” Michelle Meleen

 

If you’re interested in more eye-opening quotes about parental relationships, be sure to check out:

• Toxic Parent Quotes for Awareness & Healing
• Quotes About Selfish Parents – For Awareness & Healing
• Stop Interfering in Others Life Quotes
• Parent Role Model Quotes
• Selfish Family Quotes & Sayings That Help