A Malaysian woman has opened up about the painful childhood memories she still carries today, recalling how her grandmother openly favoured certain grandchildren.
Her confession, posted on Threads, quickly drew concern and sympathy from netizens who resonated with stories of family bias and emotional neglect.
‘We had to pay RM1 just to eat instant noodles’
The woman wrote that when she and her siblings were young, they often visited their grandmother’s house because they lived nearby. But instead of warmth, they were met with clear double standards.
She recalled that she and her siblings once asked for instant noodles. Instead of simply cooking it for them, their grandmother demanded RM1 per packet.
Meanwhile, her grandmother’s favourite biological grandchildren, the ones she “truly cared for”, could eat freely without paying.
We could only watch our cousins eat nuggets and nasi lemak while we got treated differently,” she wrote.
According to her, the bias wasn’t subtle. Her grandmother would categorise grandchildren based on their education level, skin tone and even their jobs.
“She never liked us. She only liked the few grandsons she loved the most,” she said.
Even after the siblings grew up, the treatment continued.
When we started working, she would call me to ask about my salary — just to make sure I earned less than the grandson she favoured.”
A confrontation that changed everything
One incident left an especially deep emotional scar.
She wrote that while working in another state, she used to call home every day. But after a small family dispute, her grandmother suddenly phoned her as she was getting off work.
The call began with yelling.
‘You are such a useless sister. Living a good life outside and not caring about your siblings!’” her grandmother allegedly shouted.
“That was the first time I truly hated her. I was shocked. I used to endure everything because my mother asked me to, but I can’t do it anymore.”
Despite the trauma, she emphasised that she does not harbour hatred or wish to bad-mouth her grandmother. However, she admits the emotional wounds have stayed with her into adulthood.
Her post sparked a wave of responses from netizens, many urging her to protect her own emotional wellbeing.
‘If she insults you, don’t forget to defend yourself even if it’s your grandmother. Same goes if she insults your family.’
‘May you meet someone who loves you more… Like my wife and my mom. She wasn’t close to her own mother… but with my mom, she was really close. At night when we stayed over, my mom would lie down next to my wife and they would chat… When my mom passed away, my wife cried so much.’
‘Sis… you have a voice, right? How long can your heart endure being scolded every day? You can fight back. You don’t need to curse her. Just stand up for yourself.’
