To hate the “would you like to opt out of Mother’s Day” emails

[Butterflywings84]

Just this really. I understand they are trying to avoid upset but I actually find it worse to have a pre-reminder that I’ve lost my mum. I can usually just ignore what I know is a generic email promoting Mother’s Day. Yes they sometimes get me and I always feel sad about it but the opting out emails almost feel more personal and kind of like the loss is being rubbed in my face. I’m still reminded about it as it still mentions Mother’s Day and it’s almost more of a reinforcement that she’s not here and I’m somehow different than just being able to ignore the usual spam. I’m probably being over sensitive but feels like I see more and more of these emails now and they are really starting to annoy me.

I agree. Horrible cynical virtue signalling masquerading as kindness.

I find most direct marketing contact exhausting or patronising and ignore it anyway. If you engaged with all of this shit you would not have time to do anything.

The thing I find strange is that they make a big hoo ha of doing this for Mother’s Day, but I never seem to get the option to opt out of Valentines Day emails, which presumably could be similarly hard for someone whose partner has died or who has just found out their spouse is cheating on them? I wonder why Mother’s Day specifically?

These emails infuriate me.

It is really special to me being a mum after years of infertility. It's one f*cking day a year to be thanked/ say thanks to your own mum, but NOOOOOOOOO, we don't want to upset the rest of the population do we?

It's OK if someone is not happy on Valentines, Father's, Teachers or whatever day, but it is OK to undermine a large majority of the population, who keep the population going.

I am furious to the point of maybe not spending my hard earned cash with people like Tesco, who don't appreciate me, the one who goes there and shops.

FYI my own mum died suddenly when I was young, and the after effects still haunt me to this day, and I had years and years of infertility.

At no point in any of this did I ever begrudge a mother a bunch of flowers and a card on her special day.

THANKS ALL MUMS, YOU ARE ACE XXXXX

As far as I'm concerned, they're a cynical attempt to gain confirmation that your email address is still active for another year under the pretence of 'we're a really caring brand, honest'.

If you opt out, take note of how many emails you receive afterwards - I'm willing to bet that they increase almost immediately.

I haven't received any 'opt in if you would like us to ban Mother's Day' emails. Is that a new thing for 2026?

This.

I lost my mum relatively young and tbh I ignore those daft emails. I’m a mum so it reminds me that my kids should get their fingers out and give me a card!!

No-one is saying you personally shouldn't celebrate the day or be celebrated though. They are saying to other people, who might be feeling the loss of their mum or their fertility struggles particularly strongly, here's a way out of those difficult reminders.
I find mothers day fine now. Not amazing, but fine. But the first year after I lost my mum I found it unbearable. All those forcefully cheerful messages to 'tell my mum how much I loved her' cut really deeply when I desperately wanted to do that and couldn't. All the opt out messages are doing is allowing people to remove a small amount of that pain.

I see it as the complete opposite of that! More like "a lot of the population are out celebrating their mum and getting her gifts but we know not everyone is that lucky so you can opt out of having your face rubbed in it" exactly because the rest of the country isn't going to stop celebrating.

My DM is alive and well. I opt out on those companies that do give me the option. As I don’t want to be bombarded by constant emails. As I just buy a card, nothing else.

Though I wish:
. All companies do this - including their apps
. The opting out for Mother’s Day should be permanent and not asked to opt out in future years. As I bet majority have opted out for one simple reason - they don’t have their DMs in their lives - either because they have died or have no contact with them.

So we all see it differently. I see it as another stick to beat women down with.

I don't see any opt out of valentines day, which to me is the one which makes people most miserable.

This might be retailer specific but I've definitely received Valentine's opt out emails too. I remember Fortnums sending one this year.
It's not anti women, it's anti potentially difficult days.

You are unreasonable. I am really thankful for the emails and not be bombarded with adverts for mothers day.

Yeh but once you opt out, you won't get them for any subsequent yrs

It’s only a stick to beat women with if you think “mother” is synonymous with “woman.”

It’s not. It’s nice for people who find constant reminders of mothers day painful and done in a way that causes zero harm to anybody elsez

These emails make no sense at ll
By asking if I want to opt out of Mothers Day they just reminded me that my Mum has died - its an Oxymoron in email form

TBH I find them all a bit silly. I mean, I know it is sad to lose your Mum, my DM died a few years ago. For sure, there is a bit of a sad reflection the first Mother's Day after. My siblings and I went out for a Sunday lunch that first Mother's Day to remember her. But are there really people so absolutely fragile they will be distressed by an email? It's not like you could ignore the event anyway since the shops are full of cards reminding you.

Also, what if you have children of your own? Don't they get to celebrate Mother's Day with you.

I must admit I have only had one email like this and thought the whole idea OTT.

Depends how recent it is @5foot5 , and it isn’t just mothers - I think for women struggling with infertility Mother’s Day can be very painful.

I hate YouTube constantly asking if I want a family plan and wish they had an opt out option like the Mother’s Day emails.

But it's not just women because they send them out for Father's day as well.