Parental Loss Makes A Redditor Question His Label In A Family That's No Longer His Kin

Parental loss can leave a person feeling untethered, especially when family roles keep changing after the grief settles. For one Reddit user, that uncertainty turned into a very specific question about what he is supposed to call himself now.

After his father died, his mother remarried, and later she passed away too, leaving him with only his stepfather in the picture. Then that stepfather remarried, and the Redditor started wondering whether he still fit into the family at all, legally or otherwise.

Reddit had plenty to say, and the answers were not all the same. Read on.

The Question

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Some People Were in a Similar Situation

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That question hit a nerve right away.

For This Redditor, the Answer Would Be 'Adopted.'

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Stepdads Who Take Custody of Their Late Wives' Children Are Awesome Human Beings.

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Just Hoping for the Best for Children Who Experienced Parental Loss.

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Appreciating the Stepfather

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Some commenters kept it simple and focused on the stepfather's role.

Adopting Is Not Easy for Everyone. This Is Especially True If the Child Has Behavioral Issues.

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Some People Who Went Through the Experience Did Not Bother with the Labels.

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To Simplify, After the Death of His Parents, the Redditor Became Orphaned. Since He Has New Stepparents, He Is Considered Adopted.

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Sadly, for Some Children, the Stepmoms Provided Better Lives Than Their Biological Mothers.

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This User Agrees That the Original Poster Is Now an Orphan.

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Others were more blunt about the legal side of it.

Also, the same kind of “honor dad’s wishes vs stepsiblings” tension shows up in this AITA about not splitting inheritance after a birth father’s passing.

Some Families Have It Covered.

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The Moment the Original Poster’s Mom Died, He Was No Longer Related in Any Way to the Stepfather, According to This User.

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The Relationship Between the Stepfather and the Original Poster Can Still Continue, If He Wishes.

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There Are Some Legalities Too.

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It All Depends on Whether the Stepfather Became His Legal Father.

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Some Weren't So Fortunate in a Similar Situation.

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Then the thread drifted into comparisons and side comments.

An Anime Fan Saw the Similarities with a Bakemonogatari Character. Other Anime Fans Followed Suit, Commenting the Same Name.

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The Original Poster Needs to Provide More Details Because There Are Legal Consequences.

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For Other Redditors, It's All Up to the Original Poster.

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Another User Agrees That He Is Either an Orphan or an Adopted Child.

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Since He Lost Two Parents, This Is the Quick and Easy Term.

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Unfortunately, the Original Poster Didn't Provide Much Detail.

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A Simple Yet Warm Answer.

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Losing Both Parents Is a Life-Changing Experience for Every Individual.

Death is an inevitable fact of life. Every person will have to face the death of a loved one.

However, losing them while still young can be a scarring experience. We hope that the Redditor will receive love and support from his new family.

He still deserves a place in the story, whatever the label ends up being.

Want another inheritance fight? See why this Redditor refused a late father’s equal split.